Although the real motives of yesterday's sudden move by the head of state are not known to the public Jakov Milatović to call for a dialogue between the Prime Minister and the former party comrade Milojko Spajić, several Montenegrin political actors claim that this is the result of the assessment of important international addresses that the conflicts between the two may threaten the country's path to the European Union (EU).
On the other hand, the main and responsible editor of the weekly "Monitor" Milena Perović says that it would be good if decisions of essential importance for citizens are not made after signals from the outside or from the field, but because of the genuine need for the country to turn into a European society, which will enter the EU because it belongs there, and not because of geopolitics.
Milatović announced yesterday that he will invite Spajić to a dialogue regarding European integration and the strengthening of the "civic and European center". Spajić's cabinet welcomed the invitation, saying that the prime minister will treat this initiative with special care, once it is formalized.
According to Perović, it is their obligation for the prime minister and the president of the country, to whom the majority of the population has given their trust, among other things, for the country to join the EU, to cooperate on this issue.
"For us it is 'good news', which followed a period of rivalry, tensions and mutual accusations between these two high-ranking officials. And that at a time when their political forces are not getting very good news in the local elections. Some unpleasant negotiations will follow," Perović told "Vijesta".
Spajić's Europe Now Movement (PES), in coalition with the Democrats, achieved a bad result in the elections in Budva on two occasions, while in Podgorica the government cannot be formed without the coalition For the Future of Podgorica and the Movement for Podgorica supported by Milatović. Even that coalition did not achieve the success it expected in those elections. The parties gathered around the coalition For the Future of Montenegro, on the other hand, achieve stable results in local elections or voter support for those parties is growing.
Several high-ranking Montenegrin politicians and state officials told "Vijesti" that they believe that Milatović's sudden call and Spajić's express acceptance of an "outstretched hand" are the result of the attitude of the most important European addresses and the wider international community that at the moment it is not good for the European integration of Montenegro to relations between the Prime Minister and the President are so bad, and the influence of the forces gathered around the President of the Assembly Andrije Mandić stronger.
"One of the goals is the pacification of Mandić, and the reduction of the influence he currently has on Spajić and opportunities in the country," said one of the interlocutors of "Vijesti" from the ruling coalition.
The opposition and some political analysts claim that Mandic is in fact the leader of the parliamentary majority, even though the prime minister's party has the most deputies. The head of the parliament and the politicians around him often emphasize the issues that divide the Montenegrin public, claiming that they are fighting for the rights of the Serbs, while the reaction of the prime minister and his party to this is absent, or, according to some analysts, lukewarm.
Also, several interlocutors of "Vijesti" said that foreign ambassadors in talks with representatives of the government and the opposition stressed that extraordinary parliamentary elections would not be a good solution, because the country needs a stable government until the end of the mandate, i.e. in 2027, in order for the process of European successfully brought the integration to an end.
Milatović wrote yesterday on the X network that based on the wave of positive signals from Brussels and everything that has been done so far in the process of European integration, EU membership by 2028 is an ambitious but achievable goal, and the task of all political and social actors is to give their full contribution.
"We have months and years ahead of us in which we will have to work even better and even more dedicatedly, in order to close all the chapters within the negotiation process and fulfill the conditions for joining the European family of states," Milatović wrote, announcing that he would send an invitation to Spajić when back from Brussels.
Milatović is going to Turkey on Monday, and then to Brussels, where he will meet with the new president of the European Council. Antonio Kosta, commissioner for enlargement Martom Kos and high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy Come on Kalas. He will return to Montenegro on Friday (December 6).
The prime minister's office replied to Milatović that it is particularly encouraging that his announcement of dialogue comes after Spajić presented the "Barometar 26" platform, which refers to assuming a joint obligation to conclude negotiations with the EU by the end of 2026.
"In this context, it is extremely important that all holders of public office act within their powers, in order to fulfill the obligations prescribed by the Constitution to give the wind behind the achievement of the common goal. Therefore, after a year of successful work of the 44th Government, constructive signals from the President of Montenegro are also pleasing," the announcement reads.
Milena Perović says that it is interesting that Milatović announced the invitation when he returns from Brussels and that he explained that he decided on this move "on the wave of positive signals from Brussels".
"Prime Minister Spajić's office replied politely that they would be happy to accept the invitation after Milatović formalizes it, adding that after a year of successful work of the 44th Government, they are also happy with the constructive signals from the President of Montenegro. It wasn't really that successful, and it's not European to see criticism as unconstructive," she stated.
He believes that the question is whether the thawing of relations between Spajić and Milatović will strengthen civic Montenegro, which is one of the declarative reasons for the announced conversation.
"Too much is declarative in this country, including the concept of a civil state. It is certainly good that two important political addresses come together around the goal, for which this society has been waiting for a long time. But not declaratively," said Perović.
Spajić and Milatović were ministers (finance and economic development) in the expert government Zdravka Krivokapića formed after the overthrow of the three-decade rule of the Democratic Party of Socialists in August 2020. After the fall of the Krivokapić Government, the two founded the Europe Now Movement in June 2022, based on the economic program Europe Now, which they promoted as ministers. The political split between Milatović and Spajić occurred in February of this year, although months before that they had different opinions on important issues, first of all on the ways of going to the presidential elections (in which Milatović won), then the parliamentary ones, as well as the formation of the Government after elections in 2023.
On February 24, Milatović announced that he was resigning from all party functions, dissatisfied with the "way of work and values" of PES, in which he was vice president. The PES responded that it was good that he was leaving them, "so that society would not suffer because of personal dissatisfaction", assessing that his intentions were to obstruct the work of the Government and the party.
A period of open disagreement followed, Milatović criticized and returned for re-adoption several government laws. In the press releases, Milatović and Spajić traded blows - the president criticizing the work of the Government, and the prime minister criticizing the work of the Defense Council and the appointment of ambassadors. Milatović then supported the Movement for Podgorica list in the local elections in the capital on September 29, which is made up of former PES councilors. Negotiations on the formation of the government are ongoing, because no one has the necessary majority, and the mandates of the Movement for Podgorica are decisive.
Yesterday, Milatović was at a press conference with the president of North Macedonia Gordan Siljanovsko Davkov in Cetinje, explained that he sent the invitation as the president of the country and "a man who traced the country's path towards what he hopes will happen - that Montenegro becomes the 28th member of the EU by 2028".
When asked by a journalist what his call means in the context of the negotiations on power in Podgorica, he said that these are not related matters.
He said that today the PES has neither the president of the country nor the mayor of the capital city and has come to a situation that "not only harms the Movement, but also harms the state in the context of the goal - Montenegro, the 28th member of the EU".
"My call for dialogue and call for accountability to all political constituents at the center should be viewed in this sense, and in the foreground is the leader of the once largest political party and Prime Minister Spajić," said Milatović.
Bojović: We encourage and accept dialogue at all levels
Member of the Presidency of the Europe Now Movement (PES) Vlade Bojović wrote on the X network that it is good that the president also recognized the importance of the principles that the government presented as a framework for future processes.
"In this sense, we encourage and accept dialogue at all levels as the basic mechanism for solving all issues important to Montenegrin society", he stated.
He added that the positive assessment of the Barometer 26 Government platform by the European Economic and Social Committee is a clear signal from the EU.
On November 21, the government presented the document Barometer 26, which, as announced, affirms the joint commitment of key parliamentary political actors in Montenegro to cooperate in order to successfully conclude negotiations on EU accession by the end of 2026.
In that document, among other things, it is stated that the signatories undertake to focus on state unity and cooperation in the field of EU integration, leaving polarizing issues, which could threaten the process of Montenegro's accession to the European Union, to a special mechanism for solving those issues. Such issues include identity issues and other issues that may cause ethnic or religious tensions, or destabilize the national security of Montenegro.
Informal contacts between Milatović and the European Union
The announcement of the dialogue between Milatović and Spajić came on the day when the mandates of the councilors of the new Podgorica parliament were verified, after which the negotiations on the formation of the government in the capital are expected to intensify, given that the deadlines for completing that work are running out.
"Vijesti" learned unofficially that there were informal contacts between the Movement for Podgorica, close to Milatović, and the European Union, that the representatives of those two political entities discussed the direction the capital should go, but that there was no talk of forming a government.
According to the same information, there were no contacts between Spajić and the European Union, although it was speculated in the spring that one of the constituents of that political union, the Social Democrats (SD), could participate in government at the state level.
One newspaper source from the European Union confirmed the existence of contacts with Milatović, saying that "nothing concrete" happened, but that there was talk of "assembling civil forces".
Milatović, in a statement in which he announced that he would invite Spajić to a dialogue, assessed that "the results of a series of local elections show a worrying tendency of fragmentation and weakening of political entities that belong to the civic and European center".
"In the past, I have spoken several times about the importance of gathering these subjects. According to the above, I believe that in the coming period it is necessary to overcome the disagreements between the forces belonging to the civic center and jointly move towards the achievement of the most important foreign policy goal - Montenegro's membership in the EU by 2028...", he said, among other things.
DPS head Danijel Živković announced the day before yesterday that this party had contacts with representatives of the "For a better Podgorica" coalition, of which the Movement for Podgorica is a part. He stated that they discussed not only how to achieve efficient city administration and the situation in the capital city, "but also about Montenegro in general".
The elections in Podgorica were held on September 29, and DPS won 19 mandates, the PES-Democrats coalition won 14, the alliance "For the Future of Podgorica" won 13, the list "Za bolja Podgorica" won six, the European Union won three, and the Party of European Progress and the Movement Upheaval after two mandates.
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