The European Commission has approved a financial package for Montenegro, worth almost €3.2 billion. Together with the decision to start drafting the Accession Treaty, this is considered one of the most important decisions for Montenegro in the European Union accession process, as it represents concrete financial preparations for membership in the bloc. “Today’s package is another concrete step towards Montenegro’s future in our Union. We are preparing Montenegro, our Member States and our institutions, because enlargement only succeeds when it is a common European project, built on merit, commitment and trust,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
European Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, said that this package represents the fulfilment of the European Union’s commitments, while Montenegro continues to implement reforms on the path to membership. “This will make Montenegro’s transition from a candidate country to a member state as smooth as possible. It will ensure continuity from day one of membership,” Kos said. According to the European Commission, the aim of the package is to prepare Montenegro for full participation in the budget and policies of the European Union. This means that, immediately after membership, Montenegro will be able to benefit from European funds in the same way as other member states, while, at the same time, it will start contributing to the common EU budget. This is intended to avoid interruptions in funding and to facilitate the administrative transition from candidate country status to that of a member state.
THE PACKAGE IS BASED ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT MONTENEGRO WILL BECOME A MEMBER OF THE EU IN 2028
The financial package is drawn up on the basis of the proposal for the new seven-year budget of the European Union for the period 2028-2034. The calculations are made based on the assumption that Montenegro will join the EU in 2028. The package is part of the negotiations under Chapter 33, which deals with financial and budgetary provisions and determines how a new member state participates in the European Union budget.
In this document, the European Commission estimates how much funding Montenegro could benefit from various EU programmes, how much it would contribute to the common budget and what the overall financial impact of its membership would be. The proposal has been sent to the Council of the European Union and will serve as a basis for negotiations with Montenegro under Chapter 33. The Commission’s aim is to ensure a smooth financial transition if Montenegro becomes a member of the EU in 2028, while limiting the impact on the budgets of existing member states. For this reason, it is unofficially said in diplomatic circles that Montenegro’s membership would cost EU citizens less than one euro per year per capita.
TWO IMPORTANT DECISIONS FROM THE EU
For the Montenegrin government, this is one of the two most important decisions the European Union has taken so far in favor of this country. “Montenegro is the only candidate country included in this budget forecast – which constitutes a strong political signal that the European Union sees it as a future member,” Montenegrin Minister for European Affairs, Maida Gorcevic, told Radio Free Europe. According to her, the EU is already planning the funds that Montenegro will be able to use as a member state, so that the transition from pre-accession funds to regular European funds is as easy as possible and without interruption in the financing of development and reform projects. “This planning shows that the European Union is preparing not only for the continuation of negotiations with Montenegro, but also for its successful membership, recognizing the concrete results of the reforms that this government is implementing and the progress that the country has achieved in the European integration process,” Gorcevic said.
MONTENEGRO’S EU MEMBERSHIP WOULD HAVE MINIMAL COSTS
According to experts on the European integration process, the financial package shows that Montenegro’s membership in the European Union would have a very small cost for EU citizens. “This package clearly shows how small the cost is for the European Union from the membership not only of Montenegro, but also of other Western Balkan countries. On the other hand, Montenegro’s rapid and successful progress would prove that the European Union, despite the skepticism and difficulties it faces, can still revive the enlargement policy,” Peter Žerjavić, Brussels correspondent for the Slovenian newspaper Delo, told Radio Free Europe. Recalling the great enlargement of the European Union in 2004, when ten countries joined in one day, Žerjavić assessed that Montenegro’s entry into the EU could boost the country’s economic development, thanks to the significant funds that will be made available from the European budget. “Montenegro’s membership in the European Union would also contribute to strengthening its position as part of the Western political and security space,” he said.
HOW WILL THE FUNDS BE DISTRIBUTED?
According to the European Commission’s proposal for the new EU budget, Montenegro could benefit from several European funds over the seven-year period:
1.99 billion euros through the National and Regional Partnership Plan;
277 million euros from the Common Agricultural Policy;
592 million euros for programs in the field of internal affairs;
37 million euros for Interreg cross-border cooperation programs;
as well as additional funds from other internal and external programs of the European Union.
Montenegro is the most advanced candidate country in the European integration process and is considered the most likely candidate to become a future member of the EU. So far, it has provisionally closed 16 out of 33 negotiation chapters. Authorities in Podgorica expect the accession negotiations to be completed by the end of this year, creating the conditions for Montenegro to become the 28th member of the European Union in 2028. (RFE)