In his interview for Pobjeda daily, member of the European Parliament (EP) and Head of the EP Delegation for Relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, Tonino Picula, said he’d had the opportunity to see and even hear that Montenegrin NGOs generally have close ties with specific political parties.
Therefore, he was not surprised when they wrote to the European Commission, asking it to break negotiations off. “This year’s report on Montenegro evaluates its progress as somewhat milder, which has probably been the result of numerous political turbulence following the 2016 presidential election. Regardless of political changes, Montenegro’s been a leader on the road to EU,” noted Mr. Picula.
When asked about his position on the recent presidential elections, Mr. Picun said these elections represented a mere confrontation of the electoral programs, i.e. the ruling coalition vs. those cherishing closer ties with Moscow and Belgrade: “It’s obvious that majority of citizens continuously vote in favor of Đukanović’s political ideology. The 2018 presidential elections might be regarded as the referendum on the country’s membership in NATO as they slightly shaped domestic politics and caused certain outside pressures.”
