Montenegro's ambassador to the Vatican, Miodrag Vlahović, said that he and his four fellow diplomats submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs a timely justification of why they did not respond to the ministry's invitation to consultations in Podgorica, reports Television of Montenegro. Vlahović considers the announcement of the relevant ministry that disciplinary proceedings will be initiated against the ambassadors who did not respond to the invitation, which may result in dismissal, as a blow by the new government to the best part of Montenegrin diplomacy.
"We learn from the newspaper that a priori without any insight into our documentation and what we submitted as our explanation and justification why we are not in a position to be in Podgorica and Montenegro these days. It is said in advance that what we did was untimely and that there are no justified reasons. In all civilized countries, including ours, there are institutions, mechanisms and procedures to determine whether something is done regularly and on time in a timely and correct manner, both in terms of substance and in terms of procedure," said Vlahović, as reported by Portal RTCG.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced yesterday that disciplinary proceedings will be initiated against ambassadors who did not justify not coming to Montenegro for consultations, which, as they stated, could result in dismissal.
"When everything is looked at from the side and calmly, it means a serious blow to our diplomacy in those segments and points where it was the best. Unfortunately, unfortunately for them, our diplomacy interferes with the new structure where it worked and where it brought less or more significant and positive results," Vlahović assessed.
As Vlahović recognizes, this especially applies to him, who is also the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, during whose mandate Montenegro restored its independence.
"I am really sorry if the new government structures, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the gentleman who heads it did not fully accept and understand the significance of that event and the new state situation, and perhaps towards us who participated in those processes, they have a special desire to rather, they eliminate them from the diplomatic ranks and the active diplomatic service. In this sense, I wish them much success," the ambassador added.
Vlahović does not question the right of the new government to make personnel changes in Montenegrin diplomatic missions, but he questions the way they do it. In support of this, he states that the diplomats were informed about the contradictory instructions in just two weeks exclusively through the media.
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