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Brussels ready to offer Montenegro EU candidacy

09 November 2010, 23:04 CET
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(BRUSSELS) - The European Commission on Tuesday said Montenegro had fulfilled conditions to become a candidate for European Union membership.

"I commend Montenegro's efforts in the last 12 months," said Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fuele. "They brought to the country the status of a candidate country.

"The sooner the country proceeds with the necessary reforms, the sooner it will be ready to move to the negotiating table with the EU".

An annual report on the state of play of the enlargement process, which will be put to leaders of the 27-nation bloc for approval, said Montenegro needed to work to bring up to EU standards its administration, police and the judiciary.

In Podgorica, Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said the recommendation was a "confirmation of Montenegro's efforts and work done so far" in the process of its EU integration.

"It is encouraging not only for Montenegro, but also for other countries in the region as it confirms that the EU is determined to continue with enlargement policy," Djukanovic told the state radio.

Djukanovic estimated that Montenegro "can quickly fulfil all necessary conditions and start the negotiations during next year."

The Commission remained concerned with anti-discrimination policies, freedom of expression and government relations with civil society as well as the situation of displaced persons from Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo.

"Furthermore, Montenegro needs to intensify its efforts to consolidate rule of law, in particular in the fight against corruption and organised crime, which remain serious problems," the report said.

It also pointed to vulnerabilities in the regulation and supervision of the banking sector and said persisting unemployment pointed to weaknesses in the education and vocational training systems, as well as labour market rigidities.

Montenegro, which has been independent since 2006, is also hoping to join NATO.

For neighbouring Serbia, the Commission report praised the Balkan state for improvement in its relations with Kosovo -- its former province which proclaimed independence in 2008, a move Belgrade has not recognised.

However, it called on Serbia, which has applied for EU candidacy last December, to step up its cooperation with the UN war crimes tribunal, as a key condition for its further enlargement process.

Serbian President Boris Tadic said his country "will follow the recommendations not because it is inclined to bow to pressures but because there is an awareness that things that are not functioning well should be changed," Beta news agency quoted Tadic as saying.

In Macedonia, EU candidate since 2005, Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski said his country was a "step closer to the European integration."

"This is another great success for Macedonia... Macedonia is one step closer to the European Union," Gruevski told reporters.

And Croatia, which hopes to gain admission to the 27-nation bloc by 2012, welcomed the Commission report on Zagreb's achievements, with Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor describing it as "the best ever report on Croatia's progress" in EU talks.

"It shows a progress in absolutely all areas. It is certain that we have entered the final phase of (EU) talks," Kosor told journalists.

Croatia so far closed 25 out of 35 chapters that every country must negotiate before joining the bloc.

The two most sensitive that yet remain to be closed are related to competition and the judiciary and fundamental rights.

Key findings of the Opinion on Montenegro


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