Croatia would put itself in an awkward position in the European Union (EU) if, despite Montenegrin efforts to find a solution to open issues, it continued to block Montenegro's European path, believes Vesko Garčević, professor of international relations at Boston University.
In an interview with the MINA agency, Garčević said that open discussions and mutual respect are the best way to overcome current tensions and that holding bilateral consultations on resolving open issues, at the level of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro and Croatia, is a step in the right direction.
He believes that tensions between Montenegro and Croatia have been unnecessarily raised over the past year.
"Certain ministers in the Government of Montenegro could have approached open issues with Croatia with much more tact," said Garčević.
This, he said, primarily refers to issues such as the Morinj camp, or the name of the swimming pool in Kotor.
Garčević said that this also applies to other issues, such as the Resolution on Jasenovac, which, as he assessed, Montenegro adopted following not its own interests, but those of Serbia.
"However, a different approach to these topics required not only greater diplomatic skills, but also a willingness to face the past and what happened during the 90s not only in Dubrovnik or Montenegro, but also in other parts of the former Yugoslavia," Garčević added.
He said that he did not think that the blockage of Chapter 31 - Foreign, Security and Defense Policy, would have been avoided if bilateral consultations with Croatia had taken place earlier.
According to Garčević, the blockade would have been avoided if Montenegro had not found itself in a situation where it was necessary to hold such extraordinary consultations.
"By tightening the noose around the aforementioned issues, which, in the end, we could have completely avoided, we have weakened our negotiating power on much more important issues, including the most important one - EU membership," said Garčević.
The blocking of Chapter 31, he assessed, is a warning signal to Montenegro to seriously understand that it cannot "sit on two chairs" at the same time - that it wants to join the EU, while at the same time defending Belgrade's regional policy, both today and the one inherited in the 90s.
"It should also be borne in mind that there is a strong interest in the EU for Montenegro to become a new EU member in the foreseeable future and that Croatia would put itself in an uncomfortable position within the EU if it continued the blockade despite Montenegrin efforts to find a solution to the open issues," said Garčević.
Asked whether the bilateral consultations will contribute to improving relations between the two countries and whether he expects the efforts of the Montenegrin authorities to improve relations with Croatia and resolve open issues to succeed, he said that the outcome of the consultations and further steps should be asked of the team that will negotiate with Croatia.
"Of course, open discussions and mutual respect are the best way to overcome current tensions," Garčević said.
Such an approach, he believes, is in the interest of both sides, not just Montenegro.
"Some open disagreements, such as the Morinj camp or the name of the swimming pool in Kotor, can be resolved relatively easily if there is political will and if these issues are not politicized as they have been so far. There is a significant stake ahead of us - EU membership - to sacrifice it for petty political games," Garčević pointed out.
He said he hopes the consultations will help both sides present, in a serious and documented manner, their arguments regarding other open issues, such as the Jadran ship or the demarcation at Prevlaka.
"I think that in this case the process - opening bilateral consultations and negotiating in a spirit of respecting differences and the desire to reach a solution - is equally important as the goal," Garčević emphasized.
As he said, if two sides want to cooperate, they can find creative solutions.
"Therefore, it is necessary for the Montenegrin side to prepare well and present arguments, and not just show good will to talk," said Garčević.
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