Montenegro raised the NATO flag

Despite legal-state and democratic shortcomings, Montenegro became a member of NATO. Moscow helped her indirectly. The journey to the EU will therefore not be shortened

In 1953, Baron Ismay, the first Secretary General of NATO, described the then new flag of the Alliance as follows: "A simple and harmless symbol". However, it is not such a harmless flag: the compass-star on a blue background, which has been flying over Montenegro since June 05, is causing very controversial reactions. Some think they are in the safe harbor of the Euro-Atlantic partnership. Others, on the contrary, feel sold to the "NATO-pact", which bombed the country in 1999, during the war in Kosovo. The population of Montenegro is divided into two groups of almost the same size: proponents and opponents.

Quarrel with Russia

Moscow reacted mercilessly to the 13th new NATO membership since the end of the Cold War. It stems from the "anti-Russian hysteria", which started already in March 2014. After the Russian annexation of Crimea, Montenegro quickly joined the Western sanctions. Since then, the carousel of punishment has continued to spin: in June, Montenegro banned 149 Russians and Ukrainians from staying on its territory. Moscow, in turn, banned the import of Montenegrin wine. The latter affects approximately 600.000 Montenegrins more than 144 million Russians.

Not only in the 2015th century, when Russia repeatedly helped Montenegro in the fight against the Ottomans, the ties between these two unequal partners were very close. Even during the last years, Russia was most often the biggest investor in Montenegro. Unlike other Balkan countries, where Russians are almost exclusively active in the energy sector, in Montenegro they invested in real estate and tourism. In XNUMX, about a third of all direct investments in Montenegro came from Russia. But since then, that figure has been falling. On the other hand, Russian tourists with a twenty percent share, after Serbian and Albanian guests, are still a very important source of income. The real estate boom also resulted in the fact that many beautiful palaces are now covered with hotels and vacation homes. In the summer months, the seaside town of Budva can easily be called a fairground. And whoever wants to find the "wild beauty" of Montenegro promised in the prospectuses, it is better to immediately head to the hilly north of the country.

Russian investors also bought troubled industrial giants: Železara in Nikšić and Kombinat aluminum in Podgorica. But they were not happy with that. Today, KAP is bankrupt, and Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska is in a court battle with the government. He claims that the government dragged him by the nose in the sale of the collapsed company.

Russian-Montenegro relations experienced an additional deterioration in October last year. On the day of the election, the Montenegrin authorities announced that at the last moment they had orchestrated a Russian-Serbian coup as well as the assassination of Milo Đukanović, the long-term ruler of the country. Today, it is almost impossible to determine what is the reality in this operetta affair. Moscow denied. Although Belgrade sources confirm that the two involved Russian citizens were kicked out of the country, the plan to carry out a coup with a handful of adventurers sounds unbelievable. In any case: the opposition's fear that the elite, which has ruled Montenegro for 25 years, is using the judiciary to attack its opponents is not far from the truth.

Serbia in advantage

Montenegro is not only the youngest member of NATO, but since 2012 it has been a candidate for membership in the European Union. In the snail race of the Balkan countries towards Brussels, Podgorica is in the lead. But now, when the complete line of the Adriatic is in Western hands by taking over the Montenegrin coasts, the real-political interests of the EU towards Montenegro will cool down. The center of attention will again come to Serbia, which - like Montenegro - is anything but a beacon of democracy and the rule of law. However, unlike Podgorica, Belgrade is a decisive factor in regional stability.

Neuer Zuercher Zeitung (NZZ), Translation: Mirko Vuletić