Đukanović: I expect that we will schedule early parliamentary elections soon

I expect that we will soon schedule early parliamentary elections in Montenegro, and that after those elections we will have more stable governments that will be able to seriously work on some impulses for the long-term development of economic cooperation as an important basis for overall interstate relations between our two countries, he said. President of Montenegro Milo Đukanović at a press conference with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev.
He pointed out that Montenegro is very grateful to Bulgaria for supporting our European path.
Montenegro is a country that, after the restoration of independence, clearly declared its intention to be part of the European and Euro-Atlantic community. We achieved the first goal. Montenegro is a responsible member of the NATO alliance. On the way to the second goal, we moved ahead of other aspirants for membership by 100% harmonizing foreign and security policy with the EU for years, including the attitude towards the most current issue: Russian aggression against Ukraine, and by opening all negotiation chapters. Unfortunately, due to various circumstances, the expansion policy has been at a standstill for several years - added Đukanović.
He believes that the crisis in Ukraine had a sobering effect and emphasized the geopolitical significance of the enlargement policy.
I believe that this will open up better chances for all the countries of our region to soon continue the negotiation process and to soon achieve our goals, which is membership in the family of a united Europe. It is very important that those who know us best support us along the way. This region from which I come, the region of the Western Balkans, Bulgaria knows very well as a neighbor, and because of that, its voice in the EU has a special weight - said Đukanović.
He said that he is grateful for the support so far and that he expects that support to continue.
What I can say is that after the consolidation of the executive power, we will reactivate all our potentials for reforms and for reaching the standards that will recommend us that through the regular regatta policy, Montenegro will be the first next member of the EU. We believe that this is the only good choice for establishing more reliable stability in our region. Without reliable stability, it is not realistic to talk about either economic or democratic development, and I believe that this assumption is much easier to achieve if we move within the framework of European integration - said Đukanović.
He added that he wanted to affirm the importance of Montenegrin participation in the NATO action, increased vigilance through the participation of our military formation, right here in Bulgaria, in a multinational group.
I believe that after the experience we had and achieved in Afghanistan, Kosovo, at various other addresses, where NATO is present, that now in the east of Europe we want to contribute to a better protection of the European system of values, European unity, European interests that are under attack. As we can see, Ukraine is not only a target as a country - said the President of Montenegro.
As he said, in Ukraine the targets are both the European system of values and European unity.
I think it is very important that we understand this and that everyone contributes to preserve what are our values and our interests so that Europe preserves its competitiveness and relevance in the future geopolitical unfolding. This is the interest of not only every country in Europe, it is the interest of every European citizen. We are all Europeans, some are part of the EU, some are not part of the EU, but we are all part of the European continent and we are all part of European culture, and in that sense our fundamental interests are the same and we will achieve them better if we understand each other better and if we cooperate more sincerely - he underlined Đukanović.
He said that the cooperation fostered by Montenegro and Bulgaria in continuity can serve as an example.
I believe that it will be an incentive for other countries in our region to better focus on their European interests and to work more dynamically and qualitatively on reforms in order to achieve their goals - added Đukanović.
He concluded that Montenegro is grateful to Bulgaria for the expert and political support on our European path, for the development aid we use, and I believe that all this will contribute to the achievement of common goals and the improvement of trust, the improvement of the quality of our cooperation.
I believe that this cooperation will be at a higher and higher level from year to year. So, I use the opportunity to thank President Radev once again for the invitation, for an exceptional welcome, for the friendship he has shown during the course of our visit so far, and to express the hope that this visit will also represent an important impulse for the further improvement of friendship and interstate cooperation between our two countries - concluded Đukanović.
Strong support for Montenegro's European path
The President of Bulgaria Rumen Radev said that his country strongly supports the European integration of the Western Balkans as well as the European path of Montenegro.
We are convinced that Montenegro will preserve its leadership role in European integration and we are ready to continue to provide our support and that is quite clear, even through THROUGH the official Bulgarian aid. We look forward to having a good dialogue. We can identify areas, we do this through various projects that also have their own practical implementation, and we are ready to share our experiences in the future and to provide assistance in a number of important areas that affect the process of European integration - said Radev at a press conference with Đukanović.
This process, says Radev, requires that every country with a ZB that has started its European path, respects the obligations and what has been established as a criterion in the EU.
That is why it is very important that all regional formats and initiatives work to respect the principles of good neighborliness, comprehensiveness and especially, in my opinion, respect for human rights in each individual country - pointed out Radev.
Radev also believes that traffic connectivity is a big challenge facing the two countries.
We are convinced that we still haven't used all the possibilities in this sense, and the European mechanisms so that we can have air and land connections as soon as possible. We have all the necessary historical preconditions, spiritual and cultural traditions, to have the most active cooperation in the field of education in such a way that our young people can realize themselves and stay here in our countries. In this sense, Montenegro and Bulgaria are very active in the creation of the Institute for Sustainable Development, and I think that very soon this program will enter the next phase of development - stated the Bulgarian President.
He also adds that they condemn the Russian aggression against Ukraine and that war that led to great casualties, ruins...
We support Ukraine on its legitimate path and in its struggle for sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. We also share the concern about the ongoing conflict, and we believe that all diplomatic efforts must be made to put an end to that war as soon as possible in order to overcome the risk not only for our region but also for the world. We also considered possible activities in order to be able to overcome the consequences of that war, and these consequences can be seen in high inflation, the burden on our economic and social systems, problems in the field of energy, the supply of energy resources, and it is important that we work on greater energy connectivity and we see that the contribution will be in the connection of our electricity distribution networks. In this sense, the challenges that are in the field of security, we must strengthen our partnership within NATO - said Radev.
M. J.