Adviser to the President of Montenegro for the Constitutional System and Legal Issues Boris Bastijančić pays an official visit to the European Parliament in Brussels

06/03/2023 19:30

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Adviser to the President of Montenegro for the Constitutional System and Legal Issues Boris Bastijančić pays an official visit to the European Parliament in Brussels

In an open and extensive exchange with the European Parliament Standing Rapporteur on Montenegro and President of the Working Group for the Western Balkans Tonino Picula, Bastijančić referred to a high percentage of Montenegrin citizens' support for the EU membership, noting that the European agenda must be among top priorities of any future political legislative and executive authorities that would have a demanding task to successfully remove a serious setback in the country’s progress on the European integration path in the near future. He expressed his belief that there is still a real opportunity for achieving a desired progress in the European integration process based on merit and delivered results, noting importance of establishing a full functionality of the Montenegrin judiciary.

The EP Standing Rapporteur on Montenegro Tonino Picula stressed the importance of EU presence in the Western Balkans, including commitment of EU institutions and member states to the enlargement policy. Montenegro's membership should not be called into question, especially given the expectations of its citizens, European partners and newly emerging geopolitical circumstances Therefore, political responsibility is dominantly addressed to the Montenegrin authorities, Picula said. He emphasized that the best way to end institutional, political and legal crisis is to hold early parliamentary elections, which will lead to forming a government by the political parties that have tested a trust of the citizens and won it through a legitimate election process.

They also discussed other current legal and political issues.