WORLD NEWS FOR MONTENEGRO DIASPORA
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AUTHOR:M.J. GDNUS
Slovenia and Germany have prepared a non-paper that will stipulate that there will be no possibility of veto and blockade due to bilateral issues with neighboring countries in the pre-accession process, announced Slovenian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon.
"This is an initiative to speed up the entire enlargement process, i.e. the pre-accession process, so that we will not have too many possibilities of veto blockade of neighbors due to bilateral issues and to use the possibility of qualified majority voting (QMV) several times during the process itself," Fajon said yesterday in an interview with the MINA agency.
Asked to comment on Croatia's non-paper sent to Montenegro, Fajon said that Slovenia's experience shows that bilateral issues should always be resolved in a good-neighborly spirit, and that this should be resolved before entering the EU.
“I hope that Montenegro and Croatia will have such good relations that they will close bilateral issues, and that these issues will not complicate the entire process of enlargement and Montenegro's rapprochement with the EU,” Fajon said.
She also pointed out that Slovenia and Croatia have had similar difficulties.
“Croatia was the last country to join the EU, now it needs to be a sincere partner to all the countries of the Western Balkans,” Fajon said.
She said that Montenegro has made significant progress in the past year.
“Slovenia supports the closing of the four chapters and I hope that next Monday will be a positive story and a positive message to Montenegro and its authorities,” Fajon said.
She pointed out that it is positive that everyone, the government, society, wants the European path and the reform agenda and that this is a common opinion.
“Slovenia supports enlargement to the Western Balkans and Montenegro is one of the countries that has a good chance, a good opportunity to perhaps take that step towards EU membership during the mandate of this European Commission,” Fajon believes.
She said that Montenegro closed the last chapter in 2017, and that if all goes well, the closing of the four chapters expected by the end of the year will be the first significant step.
Fajon assessed that this would then also be a message that Montenegro has a great ambition to close all chapters by the end of 2026.
"That is very important when we talk about enlargement, because there is a geostrategic moment, we are all ready that Europe should be enlarged, that it should be stronger by the end of this decade. I hope that these promises are not just promises, when we talk, but that they are concretized with reforms," said Fajon.
Asked what she sees as the biggest challenges in the next two years, Fajon replied that it is the closing of all chapters that are necessary in the enlargement process.
"Whenever the European Commission report is mentioned, we need a country that is attractive to foreign investment, so the rule of law, an independent judiciary, independent media, an efficient public administration, the fight against corruption, the fight against organized crime," Fajon said.
She added that all of these are things that every country that joins the EU should agree to do, that we have common goals.
"I am convinced, as someone who comes from Slovenia, that we need the Western Balkans," Fajon said.
She said that we are living in a time of great challenges, not only because of the war caused by Russian aggression in Ukraine, but also economic instability, migration, security and climate change issues.
"All of these are things that we need to fight together. No country can fight such challenges alone, and that is why I am convinced and believe that the Western Balkans will also become part of the EU and I hope that Montenegro will be the one that creates a good model," Fajon emphasized.
When asked how much the developments in France, the strengthening of the right, could affect the climate change in Brussels when it comes to enlargement, Fajon stated that her recommendation is “let’s deal with ourselves”.
“If we are honest, we need to make reforms to improve our lives. So, I think we are very aware that we need a united, strong and enlarged Europe”, Fajon stated.
Speaking about other countries in the Western Balkans, Fajon pointed out that Slovenia is a frontrunner in supporting enlargement in the region.
“This is our neighbourhood, these are countries that have always been part of Europe in the past and will always be part of Europe. That is why we offer support to everyone in the reform process. It is important for us that all countries work to become EU members one day”, said Fajon.
According to her, the more a country meets the conditions, the faster it will enter the EU.
“My opinion is that each country is individual. The reforms themselves and the opening and closing of negotiations are not so much a technical but a more political process”, said Fajon.
She believes that the opening of the Western Balkans Cyber Capability Center is historic for Montenegro, Slovenia and France.
“We have experts, we have potential and we need to work together in the entire Western Balkans region,” said Fajon.
As she stated, Slovenia is proud to be part of this story.
Speaking about awareness of the dangers of cyber attacks, Fajon recalled Montenegro’s experience of a few years ago, when it was exposed to a major cyber attack.
“I know that was when the first, really concrete actions and measures to combat cyber attacks were launched. We are also doing that in Slovenia,” Fajon added.
As she said, when a country enters European and Euro-Atlantic integration, it may become more of a target for similar attacks.
Fajon assessed that there is too little awareness of the danger of cyber attacks.
“That is why actions like this, joint cooperation, are very necessary,” Fajon concluded.
