News

On 28 March, during the political consultations between Lithuania and Montenegro that took place in Podgorica, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Vytautas Leškevičius and the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro Igor Lukšić discussed the possibilities of strengthening bilateral relations and cooperation in the field of Euro-Atlantic integration.

V.Leškevičius stressed that Lithuania has constantly supported the EU enlargement policy and fully supports the accession negotiations with Montenegro, and is ready to share its EU negotiation  experience. The Vice-Minister also informed about the Lithuanian authorities’ preparation and interest in the participation in the implementation of the EU-funded assistance projects in Montenegro. The Lithuanian diplomat presented a draft memorandum of cooperation in the field of EU integration, which focuses on specific areas of the partnership, to the representatives of Montenegro. Both sides have agreed to sign a joint memorandum by the beginning of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the EU.

V.Leškevičius highlighted the progress achieved in the negotiations on the accession of Montenegro and stressed that Lithuania is ready to aim at achieving sustainable progress in this area during its Presidency of the Council of the EU.

“Montenegro’s motivation in the negotiations on the EU membership is positively assessed throughout the Union. We hope that the country action plans will be prepared and timely implemented to open negotiation chapters 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights) and 24 (Justice, Freedom and Security) again in this semester. This would enable opening these essential chapters from which all the subsequent progress in the negotiations will depend during the Lithuanian Presidency”, the Vice-Minister pointed out.

Referring to the internal situation in Montenegro, the upcoming presidential elections, which will take place on 7 April, were discussed. V.Leškevičius stressed the need to ensure the compliance of the elections with international standards for democratic elections. Apart from that, Lithuania encouraged the Government of Montenegro to continue its efforts towards the consolidation of the rule of law and the security ofe the essential human freedoms. The compliance with these conditions will determine the fFurther progress of Montenegro on its way of European integration.