Montenegro has long been the front-runner in the EU accession process. The country started membership talks in 2012 and, unlike any other aspirant, has opened all negotiation chapters. Yet its headway has been slow. It has closed only three of these chapters and has not been able to deliver sufficient progress on the so-called fundamental cluster (judiciary, media freedom, combating corruption and organized crime). Under newly elected Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, Montenegro’s government has brought momentum to the accession process. If it manages to reach the so-called interim benchmarks in the coming weeks, this could unlock the path to closing more chapters and significantly accelerate the country’s integration this year.
During Prime Minister Spajić’s inaugural visit to Berlin for talks with Chancellor Olaf Scholz, we will discuss what has been achieved in this respect so far. We will also address Montenegro’s relations with its neighbors, regional security in the Western Balkans, and what the country expects from the next European Commission that is set to take office by the end of 2024. Further, we will revisit recommendations from our recent paper “Montenegro’s EU Push: Imminent Opportunities and Challenges,” which was written jointly with other think tanks, that argues that the next stage of EU enlargement is now being shaped there.
Welcoming remarks:
Rolf Nikel, Vice President, DGAP
Moderation:
Frauke Seebass, Manager of the “Balkan Hub” Project, DGAP
Comment:
Milan Nič, Senior Fellow in the Center for Order and Governance in Eastern Europe, Russia, and Central Asia, DGAP
The event will be held in English. Please register here: events@dgap.org.
If you have any questions, please contact Yulia Loeva (events@dgap.org).