Finland fully supports Montenegro on its path to full membership in the European Union, said the speaker of the parliament of that country, Jusi Hala-aho.
The President of the Assembly Andrija Mandić hosted a formal reception in the Montenegrin Parliament today for his Finnish colleague, who is on his first official visit to Montenegro at the invitation of Mandić.
After the presentation of the delegations, Mandić and Hala-aho held a tête-à-tête conversation in the office of the President of the Assembly, after which the Finnish official signed the book of impressions.
Mandić expressed his satisfaction with the first official visit of the President of the Finnish Parliament to Montenegro, adding that it is extremely important to build bilateral relations at all levels.
"We had a very important conversation today and I especially want to thank Finland for the strong support shown to us on our European journey and their very clear position that EU candidates should be approached based on their merits and the results they have achieved," Mandic said. , as announced by the Assembly.
Mandić pointed out that our country has an ambitious plan to close four negotiation chapters by the end of the year, namely: 7 (Intellectual Property Law), 10 (Information Society and Media), 20 (Entrepreneurship and Industrial Policy), 31 (Foreign, Security and Defense politics), and to close all remaining chapters by the end of 2026.
"We belong to the family of European nations, and I clearly communicated the message that I conveyed these days in Rome and at other addresses that Montenegro wants to enter the EU upright, not on its knees, nor crawling, because we hold on to our values just like the Finns they stick to theirs. We want to be an equal factor in the community of European nations, because we are Europe," said Mandić.
He concluded that our country is leading a determined fight against organized crime and corruption, because this is a key step towards recovery and a better future for Montenegro.
Hala-aho said that the relations between Montenegro and Finland are excellent and added that he believes that "we share many values and ambitions" when it comes to the international plan, the statement added.
He, as stated, praised the progress that Montenegro achieved during this year, as well as the key reforms that are being implemented and that speed up our path to the EU.
After the meeting with the guests, Mandić toured the Assembly, after which he will host a ceremonial lunch at Villa Gorica.
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