While the Democratic People's Party (DNP) says that their position on NATO integration remains unchanged and that this does not mean that their official Maja Vukićević in Washington should not talk to interlocutors from countries that are members of NATO about political issues related to Montenegro and the Western Balkans, the political analyst believes that the DNP, as well as the entire ZBCG coalition, wants to send a message that it plans to participate in government .
The DNP announced the day before yesterday that Maja Vukićević, who is the vice-president of the party, member of the Parliament of Montenegro and vice-president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in the second term, will attend the Prayer Breakfast, which is traditionally held every year, at the invitation of members of the American Congress. in Washington.
"The departure of Maja Vukićević to Washington for the Prayer Breakfast, which will be attended by leaders, politicians and other prominent figures from more than one hundred and forty countries of the world, certainly represents a significant example of the respect of the coalition ZBCG (For the Future of Montenegro) and the Montenegrin Parliament in terms of Euro-Atlantic integration and further affirmations of Montenegro in the international framework", the press release of the DNP points out.
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Answering the question whether, bearing in mind the earlier statements of the leader of that party about NATO, this represents a turn in the rhetoric and attitude towards Euro-Atlantic integration and whether this hints at support for NATO integration, the DNP stated that their position on NATO integration is known and unchangeable, and that NATO integration was completed with the act of accession of Montenegro to this military alliance.
"We respect the fact that Montenegro is a member of NATO, although we believed that military neutrality is the best security framework for our country and that citizens should have expressed their opinion on this issue in a referendum," the DNP states.
That party explains that the part of the announcement that mentions "Euro-Atlantic integration" refers to the agenda of the visit of MP Maja Vukićević, who received an invitation from a representative of the US Congress.
"At the meetings that Deputy Vukićević will have, there will be high-ranking representatives of Congress, as well as statesmen from countries that are members of NATO, but this does not mean that Maja Vukićević should not talk with them about political issues related to Montenegro and the Western Balkans ".
Prayer breakfasts will be held on January 31 and February 1 on Capitol Hill.
Political analyst Stefan Djukic he told "Vijesti" that the DNP, as well as the entire ZBCG coalition, wants to send a message that it plans to participate in the government, "that it refuses to continue to play some kind of altercation with those who have a strong influence on who forms the government of Montenegro and that they want be cooperative”.
"This decision does not make any fundamental difference when it comes to their views on the EU, which are at least in principle for accession, and NATO, which they are against, but they declaratively accept that we are a member," said Djukic.
He pointed out that "it is simply a matter of there being no more purpose in being stubborn", because being stubborn can provide some short-term satisfaction for a number of voters, but also make it difficult for the coalition's potential to participate in government.
"Furthermore, from this we can conclude that the entry of representatives of ZBCG into the Montenegrin government is realistic by the end of this year if there are no surprises", Đukić assessed.
On June 5, 2017, Montenegro officially became a full member of the Alliance, at a ceremony held at the State Department. Two days later, on June 7, the Montenegrin flag was raised in front of the NATO headquarters in Brussels.
President of DNP Milan Knezevic in April of last year, when he was a guest on the "Nachisto" show, he said that they respect that Montenegro is an independent country and a member of NATO and that they will not question these things.
The DNP and NSD took this position even after the change of government in 2020. In September 2020, Knežević said that it is known that the New Serbian Democracy and the Democratic People's Party clearly announced in their programmatic and ideological positions that it is necessary for the citizens of Montenegro to express themselves in the referendum and to be for or against in a free and democratic atmosphere the accession of Montenegro to NATO.
"It is clear to you that we as a party were against Montenegro's membership in NATO, but it is also a geopolitical and political reality that with Montenegro's membership in NATO through the contracts that have been signed, the possibility of Montenegro leaving NATO is impossible and we will respect that factual situation, indicating of course that we were in favor of the referendum and that we were against Montenegro joining NATO", Knežević pointed out at the time.
This is how Knežević and Mandić spoke about NATO in 2017.
Before the change of government, officials gathered around the former Democratic Front strongly opposed joining NATO.
In 2017, they planned to organize an alternative referendum on Montenegro's entry into the North Atlantic Alliance, but they abandoned it for financial reasons and because no party wanted to join them in it.
The then DF held a protest in Cetinje due to the session of the Montenegrin parliament where the Bill on the ratification of the North Atlantic Treaty, which provides the conditions for Montenegro's entry into NATO, was discussed.
At that protest, Knežević announced that a new NATO aggression had begun in the parliament building.
"Today he will sign the act of capitulation, which we will not accept," Knežević emphasized at the time.
The president of Nova Andrija Mandić then said that in the parliament "there are those who betrayed everything that could be betrayed, and that to enrich themselves". "Today we are reinforcing our decisions that we will change this decision at an opportune moment. If the NATO countries accept this decision, we will freeze membership in NATO, organize a referendum and the will of the people will decide", said Mandić at the time.
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