Đukanović in New York: Reawakening of retrograde ideas

The region is experiencing global political disturbances inspired by the idea of ​​forming larger, nationally and religiously homogeneous states, which are retrograde ideas that have been disastrous in the past.

This is the message that President Milo Đukanović sent during the informal working dinner of the leaders of the Western Balkans, which was hosted in New York by the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borelj.

Đukanović said that it is a pleasure that the UN General Assembly, after a one-year break caused by the coronavirus, is being held again this year in a more or less traditional format. This, as he said, is a convincing testimony that life as a whole, including political life, is slowly normalizing, and that the world will come to an end with the coronavirus and that multilateralism is alive and well.

"I consider it very important, considering the nature of the problems we are facing today on the global political and social scene. These are problems that cannot be solved by national formulas, they are problems that require everyone's action, and that is why multilateralism is very important, with its centered precisely in the UN Organization," said Đukanović, as announced by the president's office.

The UN General Assembly, he adds, was an inspiration to the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security to gather the leaders of the Western Balkans and to discuss once again the problems and the European perspective of the region.

"I used the opportunity to introduce that composition to what are the most current political and social events in Montenegro, to remind of the efforts that Montenegro has made during the previous years and decades to build its civic profile, to build and develop multi-ethnic democracy, and to trace and winning significant shares on the road to European integration."

"Also, I got acquainted with the problems that Montenegro is facing today, bearing in mind that in the region we feel strong reflections of certain global political disturbances, and that these global political disturbances have led to the reawakening of some retrograde political ideas, mainly inspired by the overcomposition of borders on the Western Balkans, and by creating the conditions for the formation of enlarged nationally and religiously homogeneous states."

"I indicated that I consider it very retrograde and absolutely disastrous, as evidenced by the losses we had in the territory of the former Yugoslavia in the early 90s, which are the result of the ideas of that time and the same ideas of today. So, I indicated that it is something that cannot threatens not only the civil, secular and pro-European profile of Montenegro, but threatens the stability of the Balkans, thereby endangering European stability and focus on the further prosperity and competitiveness of Europe as our common home," said Đukanović.

He said that he thinks that all the interlocutors understood those warnings very well.

"Together, we called on the EU to, with the initiative of the High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, Mr. Borelj, make additional efforts to help the Western Balkans so that the Western Balkans would reach their European perspective in the near future, and so that we as a whole, as Europe, would thus close the door to destructive influences that threaten both European unity and the European system of values. It seems to me that the conversation was very useful, precisely because it was very open, and where we discussed the essence and not some more or less marginal aspects of that European policy in the Western Balkans Đukanvoić said.

He believes that a lot of inspiring ideas have been given that could serve for a successful summit of the EU and the Western Balkans, which is planned for October 6 in Ljubljana.

"Also, I expect that in the coming days in New York we will have a lot of bilateral talks on this very topic, and that all these talks could contribute to a more realistic and foreseeable European perspective for both Montenegro and our region", he concluded.