Dubravka Lalović and Marija Lakić Barfus have received the green light from the Committee for International Relations and Emigrants to become ambassadors to France and Switzerland, respectively.
This was decided at today's session.
At the beginning of her presentation, Lalović said that she has been a career diplomat for 24 years.
She emphasized that cooperation with France is very important, due to its accession to the European Union (EU) and membership in NATO.
"The European perspective for the Balkans has no alternative... In the context of European integration, we appreciate the great support of France," she stressed.
Europe Now Movement (PES) MP Nađa Laković asked to what extent cohabitation as a result of diverse parliamentary election results threatens the functionality of France and opens up space for fundamental constitutional reform given the growing perception of a democratic deficit and weakening parliamentary legitimacy.
Lalović replied that it was an internal situation in France, but that she would follow it closely. She reminded that the presidential elections in that country are next year.
Gordan Stojović (PES) asked Lalović whether a change of government would affect the EU.
"How would the possible participation of radical political actors in government affect French foreign policy, especially within the EU and NATO, and would this lead to a redefinition of European integration from a French perspective? The second question is - how, by continuously strengthening Marine Le Pen in public discourse, does she reflect the crisis of traditional political parties of the left and center-right in order to reduce political radicalization? Then something for Jordan Bardella - in what way does he justify the European political participation of his party (the National Front) in institutions that he programmatically criticizes and whose sovereign discourse often implies distancing himself from the idea of European integration? Doesn't this hide a contradiction between political rhetoric for the domestic electorate and pragmatic political action at the EU level?" he asked.
"And the last question is related to the left, Rafael Glikman. In the context of increasing youth abstinence and radicalization of the political spectrum, can Glikman's platform mobilize the electorate outside the urban and educated middle class and how does he plan to overcome the perception that his platform remains elitist?" Stojović added.
Lalović responded that France is a developed democracy, with a large political spectrum.
"France is very active within the EU... There will be a very dynamic dialogue. I think it is always a constant to see France's support for the Western Balkans region and the enlargement policy... I think there is an awareness in the geostrategic context that enlargement is inevitable, but that there will be more discussion about when and how it will happen. It is up to us to follow," she explained.
She received unanimous support from the board to be appointed to the ambassadorial position.
The second point is the hearing of Lakić Barfus.
At the beginning of her presentation, she said that she was a professional diplomat with 20 years of experience, and that she had been involved in economic diplomacy.
"For a short period, in the previous government, I was the Director General of the Directorate for Security Policy and NATO, and then, at the initiative of the president, his foreign policy advisor, and I held that position for a year and eight months. After that, in the last few months I have been at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs... I have served abroad several times. The first time was in 2009, we covered Italy, San Marino and Malta, and after that I served in Vienna," she said.
She added that Montenegro is the only country in the Western Balkans without an embassy in Bern, and that its opening could lead to Switzerland opening its representative office in Podgorica.
She pointed out that around 22.000 Montenegrin emigrants live in that country, and that this will be a special place in the embassy's scope of work.
Lalović announced that Montenegro and Switzerland have an established airline, and that Mamula is an investment from that country.
Bosniak Party MP Admir Adrović said that the Montenegrin diaspora in Switzerland is very successful, and that this potential should be utilized.
Stojović asked two questions.
"To what extent would redefining relations with the EU through a referendum, either along the lines of deeper integration or distancing, affect Switzerland's access to the EU internal market, especially in the medical products, financial services and energy sectors? Regarding this referendum - how would the eventual acceptance of a new institutional framework between Switzerland and the EU, including joint supervision, dynamic transposition of the acquis and the role of the EU Court of Justice be implemented within the Swiss legal order and what legal consequences would it have on the autonomy of domestic legislation - especially in the areas of state aid, free movement of persons and market surveillance?" he asked.
Lakić Barfus responded that Switzerland is a neutral country in the context of the EU and NATO, but not in terms of values, and that she sees no concern about negative repercussions for the region and Montenegro's European integration.
Laković asked what constitutional and legal mechanisms the Swiss Federal Council could use to mitigate a potential conflict between the referendum results and obligations arising from bilateral agreements with the EU.
The candidate for ambassador responded that Switzerland has a tendency to strengthen relations with the EU, but also that she does not see any negative consequences in that country's cooperation with the union.
Democratic Party of Socialists MP Andrija Nikolić said he would support Lakić Barfus and stressed that he was certain that he would do a good job.
"At this moment, the question is what is the valid foreign policy doctrine in the Government, given the conflicting positions of the Minister of Foreign Affairs on the one hand and the Deputy Prime Minister for Foreign Policy on the other," he pointed out.
And she received unanimous support from the board.
Bonus video:
