Podgorica has completed 14 of the 33 chapters required for provisional closure before joining the bloc. The rule of law remains the most challenging obstacle, with Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos encouraging Montenegro to continue reforms.
With a population of around 600,000, Montenegro became an EU candidate in 2010, four years after its separation from Serbia, and began accession talks in 2012. It aims to join by 2028, even branding its national airline with the slogan ’28 by 28.’
The Commission intended to use Montenegro as a pilot for a strategy to avoid another “Hungary 2.0,” a phased, two-tier accession approach aimed at preventing democratic regression post-membership, a plan that has encountered resistance from EU countries recently.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte also met Montenegro’s President Jakov Milatović on Wednesday during his visit.
Milatović posted on X that their discussion included “key factors we must work on as a country in the final stage of negotiations with the European Union,” focusing on regional stability and credible NATO membership.
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