Montenegro is fully prepared to resolve all open issues with its neighbors bilaterally in open dialogue, in good faith, said Montenegrin President Jakov Milatović.
He met with Croatian President Zoran Milanović today at Villa Gorica.
"We are connected to Croatia by more than just our neighborhood. I am glad that Montenegro is the first country Milanović visited after his re-election. Croatia and Montenegro share history and values - that they stand for peace, stability and European cooperation," said Milatović.
Montenegro continues, he added, with its foreign policy goals.
"Brussels and Berlin are important partners, but they are neighbors whose everyday life is reflected in family relations and trade. Montenegro is fully prepared to resolve all open issues with its neighbors bilaterally in open dialogue, in good faith. We can admit our mistakes, but we also want to point out those on the other side. There are no innocent people here. Just as the resolution on Jasenovac did not contribute to improving relations, certain positions from Croatia, especially in the context of Lore, do not contribute to relations."
Milatović said that he welcomes the communication between the governments of Montenegro and Croatia.
"I want to emphasize the importance of minority communities - Montenegrins in Croatia and Croatians in Montenegro, because they are a bridge in our relations."
Milanović said that it is in Croatia's interest for Montenegro to be in the European Union.
"You, like us, are a member of NATO, an alliance that is going through turmoil. When I was first elected president, after Slovenia, one of the first countries I visited was Montenegro. Unlike some former colonial powers, we reach as far as we can. I am the president of the state and I can do as much as I can, I am not the prime minister. On certain issues, I can only spread goodwill. You say that the EU is an imperative for you. Don't give in to the imperative, there are too many, lest you be trampled on," he said.
When asked by reporters whether there had been any discussions about the statements made by Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman about the Lora camp, Milanović said yes.
He said that this was Grlić Radman's position, and that he could not comment on it.
"There was some kind of camp in Lora. People were killed there, they were punished for it and are in prison. It is up to the Croatian judiciary to resolve it," Milanović said.
He added that it should be determined whether the soldiers who were brought to Lora were supposed to be there, and whether they were killed, and that the cases of civilians brought from Konavle to Morinj should be investigated.
"I don't think that Milatović or I will solve this. We don't have that power," he pointed out.
Milatović said that he and Milanović are setting an example of how relations between Montenegro and Croatia should develop, and that his invitation and Milanović's arrival are a kind of message.
"The vote for the Jasenovac Resolution was a way for the parties to hide the vote on Srebrenica. I criticized that, as well as today's clumsy statement by a Croatian minister. We will not integrate best into the EU with Ireland or some Baltic country, but with neighboring countries," said Milatović.
Milanović, responding to a Croatian journalist's question about why his country would not join the Coalition of the Willing, said that Russia "is not a friendly country to them, but it does not pose such a danger to Europe."
"As far as I'm concerned, Croatian soldiers will not participate in that travesty," he stressed.
Milanović said that he won the election on the promise that Croatian soldiers would not go to war in Ukraine.
When asked by reporters whether Croatia should unblock Chapter 31, Milanović said that he does not decide, but that more serious discussions could begin about it.
"It takes two to tango, and many more to dance. Discussions about this should begin after the local elections in Croatia in two months," he pointed out.
Milatović criticized the practice of waiting for local elections for certain state issues, and that such a practice was also observed in Montenegro last year.
"Let's not go back, but move forward. We have no one closer to each other. Does anyone think that some Scandinavians are closer to us than the citizens of Croatia? With all the shortcomings of the EU, that project is the best that exists," said Milatović.
The President of Croatia said that they remain neighbors with Montenegrins, Serbs, and Bosnians.
"The relationship towards the Serbian minority in Croatia is very important to us and always will be," Milanović said.
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