Montenegro has met its commitments and is ready for the opening of Chapter 27 – Environment and Climate Change, which is expected by the end of this year, Montenegro’s Chief EU Negotiator Aleksandar Drljevic has stated.
He recalled that the negotiating position for this chapters was presented in February.
“Montenegro has met its commitments and is ready for the opening of Chapter 27. We expect it to be opened by the end of the year,” Drljevic told Mina.
He noted that the chapter deals with very demanding and complex issues and that numerous challenges will still remain after its opening.
According to the Chief Negotiator, Montenegro’s responsibilities in this area will remain even after the EU accession.
“We are working hard to comply with the EU acquis and attain European standards in the areas such as waste disposal, water management or better air quality, because our goal is to ensure health environment for the citizens and new generations,” Drljevic noted.
Asked if the opening of Chapter 27 is taking too long, he replied that with every new enlargement the number of EU Member States increases and the accession process becomes more demanding and more complex.
Drljevic recalled that with the adoption of a comprehensive National Strategy for Chapter 27 in July 2016 Montenegro met a benchmark for the opening of the chapter which he described as one of the most demanding in the EU accession talk, not only from the administrative point of view, but also in financial terms.
Mina news agency