The decision of the head of state Jakov Milatović to the Prime Minister and the leader of the Europe Now Movement (PES) Milojko Spajić calls for dialogue, in PES they interpret it as a "hint" from a former party comrade that they should form the government in Podgorica, as his potential maneuver to do it with the opposition or to provoke new elections, or as a move without a purpose, which cannot bring closer. Part of PES's partners from the state government sees Milatović's act and Spajić's acceptance of the invitation as getting closer to an agreement on the formation of a local government.
The president announced the day before yesterday that, after his visit to Brussels next week, he would invite the prime minister for a discussion on the issue of European integration and strengthening of the "civic and European center", which Spajić's cabinet and PES welcomed.
Milatović announced the initiative at a time when negotiations on the constitution of the government in the capital are expected to be finalized, which is why it should be clearer with whom the Movement for Podgorica (PzPG), close to the head of state, could cooperate. The day before yesterday, the President stated that his call had nothing to do with the issue of sub-election negotiations.
A day after the call, and the assessment by experts of political opportunities that important international addresses assist in the reconciliation of former comrades, the two exchanged harsh words - Spajić, among other things, accused Milatović of obstructing Montenegro's path to the European Union (EU) and that he has no authority to deals with those integrations, and the cabinet of the head of state responded that the prime minister showed a lack of "maturity and responsibility that the position" he covers requires.
Docent at the University "Donja Gorica" Nikoleta Djukanovic she told "Vijesti" that the possibility of cooperation between the parties should not be ruled out regardless of their disagreements, that on the Montenegrin political scene we have not seen a party that literally respected the principles it advocated, "if it had any at all", and that therefore it would not surprise her any post-election combinatorics, "just to get to the positions of the government".
He believes that Milatović's move can be interpreted in two ways. One, he explains, implies his "important role", regardless of the protocol powers of the position he is in.
"He can give impetus to the process of integration, so this can be a step towards greater reconciliation between social and political actors. Especially in this period, when there is a drastic collapse of the rule of law and the decline of democracy, and, on the other hand, the appearance of anti-democratic and anti-European initiatives from the ranks of the Government, that is, the ruling majority. So it can be viewed in the way that maybe some 'light bulb' has turned on for the president, and that now maybe he needs to overcome some animosities in order to succeed in stopping anti-democratic movements", says Đukanović.
Another way of interpreting Milatović's move is, according to her, that it is just a political act.
"For him to present it as his effort to reach reconciliation, and to remove responsibility from himself if we do not use this chance for the integration process. Because, we should not forget that he is one of the key 'culprits' why this kind of government was formed, especially with the former Democratic Front (DF)... If we have initiatives such as changes to the Law on Citizenship or the adoption of the law on 'foreign agents' , I am sure that the EU will not tolerate it. So it wouldn't be surprising if we end up with another extreme, if it was all a political show...", notes Đukanović.
"Vijesti" announced yesterday that several high-ranking Montenegrin politicians and government officials believe that Milatović's sudden call and Spajić's express acceptance of the "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 that 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 (the leader of the former DF) is getting stronger.
The source of "Vijesti" from Spajić's party said that there are several interpretations of Milatović's call. Some of them, he says, are that it is the president's signal to form a government in Podgorica, and that it is a fake invitation that would serve him to, in the end, enter into an alliance with the opposition Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) or "produce" new elections. .
The interlocutor assesses that both Milatović's gesture and Spajić's and PES's reaction to it are good messages, but that he does not know whether there can be a rapprochement between the feuding parties.
"We would like Milatović's hand to be sincerely extended. If it's faking, that would be bad. Both PES and Milatović are losing support from the split, so reconciliation would be in the interest of both parties," he says.
Another source from PES said that he believes that there will be no "reconciliation" between Milatović and Spajić, explaining that there is "too big a gap" between them.
"I don't think there can be anything," he stated, adding that the results of some public opinion polls showed that the quarrel with Milatović "cost" the PES the most in the Podgorica elections.
The alliance of PES and Democrats won 29 votes at the polls on September 17.672, while Spajić's party in early parliamentary elections in June last year in Podgorica with smaller coalition partners had 27.620 - almost ten thousand more.
The interlocutor from the Democrats says that the president's invitation and the prime minister's response are "a step towards an agreement" on the formation of the government in the capital, and that he believes that it will happen.
A day after conciliatory tones from both sides, mutual name-calling and accusations followed. First, Spajić, at a media conference in the Government, said that Milatović has no authority when it comes to "Montenegro's European path", nor anything to do with European integration. Asked how the eventual calming of tensions between the two would be good for Montenegro, he answered by saying that they did not quarrel, but that it certainly has no effect on the European path.
The Prime Minister accused Milatović of obstruction, that is, of not signing some laws immediately. Regarding the president's assessment that PES has deviated from the right path, he said:
"As far as I saw in the announcement, he didn't say anything concrete, he talked about some diversion from Tito's road, Jakov's road, any road. That we are pioneers and that we have deviated from that path... However, I do not know what that path means, because we have not deviated from the European path and the path of increasing citizens' standards...".
Despite all of the above, Spajić said that he is ready to cooperate with all institutions, including the president.
When asked to comment on the assessments that the dialogue with Milatović was initiated by the Western partners due to the weakening of the so-called of the "centrist block", the head of PES said that he had no communication with the Western partners on this topic.
"Maybe he had Milatović, so ask him," he added.
The president's cabinet reacted to Spajić's allegations, assessing that Spajić showed a lack of maturity and responsibility, and that Milatović is not the one slowing down the country's European path...
"The responsibility for that should be reexamined by those who continuously pass laws in a non-transparent manner, continue bad practices from the past and collapse the relations of Montenegro with its neighbors, which is already producing numerous negative consequences", they stated.
Spajić and Milatović were ministers (of finance and economic development) in the government Zdravka Krivokapića formed after the dismissal of the three-decade rule of the DPS in August 2020. After the fall of that government, the two founded PES in June 2022, which has since won the presidential and parliamentary elections and taken power in several cities, including Podgorica. At the end of February, after several months of disagreements with Spajić, Milatović resigned from all positions in PES (he was deputy president), saying that the party's way of working until then was contrary to the promises and values he had in mind when creating it.
Đukanović: A possible agreement would strengthen the government at the state level
When asked what would happen if Milatović and Spajić agreed to form a government in the capital, Nikoleta Đukanović says that she thinks it would strengthen the position of the ruling majority at the state level.
"If there is no government formation in Podgorica, or if it happens with the opposition parties, that will put the survival of the government in question... If there is cooperation between them (Milatović and Spajić), I think that it will only involve the division of functions and that it will be very similar to the previous government. Then we will have absolutely the same constituents as we had after the 2022 elections, who unsuccessfully negotiated so many times so that the government would survive... I'm just not sure that even if there was some cooperation, how long-lasting it would really be".
If there is an agreement, will it be a two-year "rotation"?
"Vijesti" learned unofficially that as a potential model for the formation of the government in the capital, in the agreement between Milatović and Spajić, "rotation" in leading positions is mentioned.
According to that information, the head of Podgorica would be someone from the "Za bolja Podgorica" list (supported by Milatović in the elections and made up of PzPG and the Citizens' Movement URA) for two years, and someone from PES for two years. In that case, the position of head of the city parliament would be covered by someone from the coalition "For the Future of Podgorica" (former DF).
Vuković: Some from the international community are trying to save what can be saved
Vice President of DPS Ivan Vukovic The night before last, in the show "Načisto" on "Vijesti" Television, he addressed the rumors that some Western diplomats are mediating in the "reconciliation" between the president and the prime minister.
Vuković said that "it is true that a number of representatives of the international community are trying to save what can be saved" in Montenegro, because they believe that "the older interest is for Montenegro to join the EU".
"A has a real chance in two or three years. We are aware of that... It does not harm us. DPS was at 20 percent support a year ago, today it is at 28. That is 40 percent growth for the year from the "deep opposition". The problem is that this is not in the interest of Montenegro and Podgorica".
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