Romania supports the impressive progress Montenegro has made in the process of EU accession and it will continue supporting Montenegrin institutions in their efforts towards full-fledged EU membership, the meeting between State Secretary for European Integration and Chief Negotiator Aleksandar Andrija Pejović and State Secretary for European and Bilateral Affairs at the Foreign Ministry of Romania George Ciamba concluded.
The two officials exchanged opinions on Montenegro’s implemented and planned activities in the context of EU accession.
Ambassador Pejović thanked State Secretary Ciamba for Romania’s support, including sending experts in various areas, and especially in the areas of environment, rule of law, and food safety. He informed his interlocutor of the results Montenegro has made in the negotiation process, focusing on reform activities in the rule of law area. Mr Pejović underlined that Chapters 23 and 24 are the foundation of the overall progress and a cornerstone of the integration process, for which reasons they are receiving special attention. He underlined that Montenegro also works with the same vigour in other chapters towards meeting the necessary commitments, and underlined that for this reason Montenegro readily awaits the opening of the remaining negotiation chapters.
State Secretary Ciamba welcomed the results Montenegro has made in its EU accession process, noting they all add up to Montenegro’s status of the enlargement process leader in the Western Balkans. He spoke about Romania’s negotiation experience and underlined that Montenegro may count on all the necessary support of Romanian institutions and experts when it comes to strengthening administrative capacities and ensuring high quality implementation of accession process commitments.
The two officials also exchanged opinions on key challenges and future expectations and obligations in the run up to EU membership. In that context, they discussed the process of realisation of concrete activities aimed at the implementation of the memorandum on cooperation in the areas of European integration and environment, as well as further transfer of Romanian experience in the form of exchange of diplomats and twinning projects.