Ambassador of the EU Delegation to Montenegro Johann Sattler has assessed that the time has come in Montenegro for political leaders to make compromises in order to prevent the country from deviating from its EU path.
“I encourage the ruling majority to open a dialogue with political stakeholders about the Parliament’s decision regarding the retirement of the Constitutional Court judge. But I also encourage the opposition to consider the Government’s offer to discuss a common public platform whose goal is to put national interests above party interests and provide cross-party support for all reforms and decisions necessary to complete negotiations on EU accession”, Ambassador Sattler has told Pobjeda.
He adds that ensuring the full functionality of the Constitutional Court through the timely selection of the remaining judges, based on merit, transparency and legal requirements, is a fundamental issue of the rule of law and a key condition for Montenegro’s path to the EU.
As the spokesperson of the European Commission has already announced, the EU is concerned about the Parliament’s decision to end the Constitutional Court judge’s term, the Ambassador stresses.
“I will not go into the legal interpretations of this issue. I am more interested in seeing the beginning of a constructive dialogue between political stakeholders, which will return the political focus to the country’s strategic path towards EU membership”, he points out.
According to Sattler, just like the issue of the Constitutional Court, electoral reform is another key rule of law issue that requires broad cross-party support.
“We welcome the recent extension of the term of the Parliamentary Committee on Comprehensive Electoral Reform and encourage all political stakeholders to prioritize the remaining work on electoral reform”, he has emphasized.
“A boycott of institutions is certainly not in the interest of Montenegro at a time when the country wants to progress in the process of integration into the EU. Instead, Montenegro needs all its strength in order to achieve its ambitious EU accession plan. This can only be achieved through broad political support for key reforms and decisions in the area of the rule of law. There is no other way”, Sattler has underlined.
“The European project was founded after the terrible wars that devastated our continent. That is why good neighbourly relations are at the very core of the European project. It is absolutely crucial that Montenegro has good relations with its neighbours and EU member states. We encourage the Montenegrin authorities to continue working in accordance with the steps taken in recent weeks to resolve outstanding issues with Montenegro’s EU neighbour, Croatia”, the EU Ambassador has concluded.
