The European Parliament’s rapporteur for Montenegro, Marjan Šarec, reaffirmed strong support for the country’s EU accession while acknowledging existing challenges.
Presenting a draft report before the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Šarec highlighted issues such as parliamentary deadlocks and dysfunctional local governments as obstacles to progress.
He warned that despite Montenegro’s goal of joining the EU by the end of the decade, significant work remains, particularly regarding Chapter 31 on foreign policy, whose opening has been blocked by Croatia.
Šarec emphasized that bilateral disputes should not obstruct accession negotiations and urged all stakeholders to focus on closing the remaining chapters.
The draft report commended Montenegro’s commitment to EU reforms, its alignment with the bloc’s foreign and security policies, and its progress on judicial and fundamental rights chapters (23 and 24). However, it stressed the need for political stability, effective implementation of reforms, and continued efforts to counter external destabilization threats and disinformation campaigns.
The European Parliament also urged Montenegro to fully align its visa policies with the EU, particularly concerning high-risk countries, and to strengthen media freedom by ensuring protection for journalists.
