Stronger support for the judiciary, strengthening the capacities of the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT), the Special Police Department (SPO), as well as the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (ASK), and strengthening the working groups for negotiation chapters 23 and 24, along with precisely defining deadlines for implementing reforms from the European agenda, will contribute to meeting the conditions for Montenegro's membership in the EU by 2028, is the message of the constitutive session of the Rule of Law Council.
This was announced today by the Government of Montenegro.
The statement states that at the Council session, chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister for the Political System, Judiciary and Anti-Corruption, Momo Koprivica, mechanisms for overcoming obstacles to improving the rule of law were discussed.
"Particular importance was given to the development of action plans for fulfilling the final benchmarks in negotiation chapters 23 and 24, since they contain key obligations for improving the situation in this important area. In this regard, the importance of precisely defining obligations and setting realistic deadlines was emphasized, taking into account the Government's commitment to fulfill all obligations from the European agenda by the end of 2026, so that Montenegro can become a full member of the European Union by 2028," the statement said.
The Government stated that the session specifically discussed the need to strengthen human resources and administrative capacities in the executive and judicial branches of government, with a special focus on creating better working conditions in the judiciary.
"The Council members agreed that the issues of the lack of judges and the strengthening of the spatial capacities of the judiciary and the state prosecutor's office must be addressed as a priority, since these issues reflect on the overall legal security in the country. In this regard, a set of specific recommendations and tasks for the competent authorities was formulated with regard to improving the working conditions of institutions, primarily the Special State Prosecutor's Office, the Special Police Department, as well as the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption," the statement reads.
It is stated that the President of the Council expressed the expectation of responsible behavior and full commitment from all members of the Council to fulfilling the final benchmarks in Chapters 23 and 24.
"He announced that the Council will meet, as a rule, once a month in order to ensure adequate supervision and monitoring of the implementation of obligations in the area of the rule of law. During the session, the need for systemic harmonisation with GRECO recommendations in the area of the fight against corruption was also emphasized, and a review of other current events from the negotiation process was given, such as the need to adjust the composition of the negotiating working groups for chapters 23 and 24 and the development of the Montenegro Accession Programme to the European Union 2025-2026. The Council's Rules of Procedure were adopted at the session, and the basic directions regarding the methodology of the upcoming work of this body were also determined," the statement reads.
The Deputy President of the Council is the Minister of European Affairs, and the members are the President of the Supreme Court, the President of the Judicial Council, the Supreme State Prosecutor, the Chief Special Prosecutor, the Director of the Anti-Corruption Agency, as well as the Ministers of Justice, Internal Affairs, Human and Minority Rights, the Director of the Police Administration, the Chief Negotiator, the Negotiator for Cluster I, and the Heads of the Negotiating Groups for Chapters 23 and 24. The Council also includes one representative of the NGO sector.
"The Rule of Law Council will be the engine for accelerating the fulfillment of the final benchmarks from chapters 23 and 24, which are of crucial importance for completing accession negotiations with the EU," the statement reads.
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