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EU, Montenegro broaden membership talks despite expansion freeze

30 March 2015, 15:53 CET
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EU, Montenegro broaden membership talks despite expansion freeze

Hahn - Vujanovic - Photo EC

(BRUSSELS) - The European Union announced Monday it was broadening its negotiations with Montenegro on future EU membership even though the 28-nation bloc has frozen expansion over the next five years.

Both sides agreed Monday to start talks on taxation and external affairs as part of the wide-ranging negotiations, the European Council, which represents the member states, said in a statement.

With the two new chapters, the EU and Montenegro are now negotiating 18 out of 35 chapters for membership, it said.

On taxation, the council urged Podgorica to "make significant progress" toward alignment with the EU in the areas of value-added tax, excise duties and direct taxation.

Montenegro was also asked to follow Brussels' example on foreign policy.

The tiny southeastern European country has already followed the EU's diplomatic lead on the Ukraine crisis, applying economic sanctions against Russia -- something neighbouring Serbia, also an aspiring EU member, has not done.

The EU said that it would hold a conference on Montenegro's membership bid in June, in order to "take the process forward".

Podgorica began accession talks with the EU in 2012.

The negotiations have dragged over Montenegro's delay in establishing an independent judiciary as well as in fighting organised crime and corruption.

In July, the EU Commission's new chief Jean-Claude Juncker said the bloc would freeze expansion over the next five years, saying the EU "needs to mark a pause in its enlargement process so that we can consolidate what has been done with 28" members.

The bloc had grown rapidly from 15 to 28 member states in the previous 10 years, with the former Communist countries of eastern Europe joining en masse in 2004.

EU relations with Montenegro

 


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