A working group to draft an agreement (treaty) on Montenegro's accession to the European Union may be formed by the end of the year because Denmark is ready to put it on the agenda before the end of their presidency, "Vijesti" has learned.
A "Vijesti" source familiar with the course of the accession negotiations recalled that the conclusions of the EU Council from December 2024 mentioned that, once the conditions are met, an ad-hoc working group will be formed in the Council to draft the agreement.
"The members are taking this into account, Cyprus has already prepared the ground administratively, and the Danes are ready to put the formation of this group on the agenda before the end of their presidency," the source said.
Denmark took over the rotating six-month presidency of the EU from Poland in July, followed by Cyprus in January.
A source from "Vijesti" states that all the "puzzle pieces are in place", and they are just waiting for the procedure to close a group of negotiation chapters by the end of this year.
"This way, together with the European Commission, we will demonstrate to the member states that we are ready for this step. In short, the end of December is a realistic time when we can expect to be ready to establish this working group. The Croatian example from 2011-2013 tells us that approximately one year is enough for drafting, so we are on time," he said.
On 30 June 2011, Croatia completed its accession negotiations with the EU, which began in 2005. The EU Accession Treaty, which sets the date of membership at 1 July 2013, was signed in December 2011.
The Ministry of European Affairs told "Vijesti" that the goal of Montenegro, together with its European partners, is to prepare a draft agreement before the formal conclusion of negotiations, and to have it signed at the time of accession.
"We are already working on defining transition periods, while the institutions are rapidly fulfilling their obligations for the provisional closure of chapters. The plan is for Montenegro to complete the negotiation process by the end of next year, and in the meantime, during the Danish and Cypriot EU presidencies, we will work intensively on preparing the draft accession treaty," they said.
The President of Montenegro said that it is high time to start drafting an agreement with the EU. Jakov Milatovic on Thursday at the plenary session of the European Political Community Summit in Copenhagen.
"Such a step would be a strong incentive for Montenegro to complete the remaining reforms, and at the same time a strong signal to all other candidate countries that the European path is real, that reforms have been rewarded and that enlargement remains a living promise - and not a distant prospect," said Milatović.
Resolve the constitutional crisis and close the chapters planned for this year
Former Minister of European Integration Jovana Marović sees no reason not to form a working group that would begin drafting the accession treaty, if Montenegro resolves the constitutional crisis and closes the negotiation chapters that are foreseen in the roadmap for this year, and to which the European Commission itself has already given the "green light".
He believes it is crucial that the European Union clearly communicates by the end of 2025 that the accession treaty will be signed and ratified by 2028/2029, of course subject to the fulfillment of specific reforms.
"Such a move would be a strong signal to both candidate countries and citizens of the region that the enlargement process has a clear timeframe and real political will at the EU level," Marović told "Vijesti".
He says that it is also important that the treaty itself contains strong safeguards that would preserve the credibility of the EU and ensure that the standards do not remain just a dead letter on paper.
"This is also important for our citizens, because the enlargement process must not be based (only) on a political decision, but must remain what it essentially is - a transformative process," she said.
Marović states that, when it comes to Montenegro, and possibly Albania, as countries that are currently achieving results in the negotiation process, it is necessary for them to demonstrate at least two years of consistent application of the law through final judgments in high-level corruption cases before signing the agreement, to ensure a meritocratic system of appointment and evaluation of the work of judges and prosecutors, to adopt and implement laws on freedom of the media and elections, and to continue the full alignment of their foreign and security policies, and additionally the visa regime, with the policies of the European Union.
"On the one hand, the draft accession treaty may remain without any real significance if clear guarantees, precisely defined deadlines, concrete conditions and safeguards are not provided, as well as if an unambiguous message is not sent from the EU level to the member states that this is a 'win-win' situation and that there is no reason to fear that a new member could destabilize the Union politically or economically after accession," she explained.
There is still no strong political will from individual member states.
Marović reminds that there is still no strong political will in some EU countries to accept new members, and additional complexity is introduced by the fact that ratification in some of them may also involve organizing a referendum.
Marović said that, on the other hand, it is known that the EU has not fully fulfilled its promises to candidate countries in the past, so a publicly binding timeframe would represent additional pressure and proof that enlargement is not a dead policy, but a concrete and achievable goal.
"I believe that this approach would restore confidence in the enlargement process and give it a new dynamic. This is precisely what the citizens of the region, as well as the Union itself, expect - to see that membership is realistic, achievable and deserved. Finally, I believe that the work on the draft accession treaty itself would have both a corrective and stimulating role," she said.
The Ministry of European Affairs said that the drafting of the accession treaty will be launched for the first time using the new methodology with Montenegro.
"This is a complex process that requires time and careful preparation," they said.
They reminded that the Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorcevic At the beginning of September, at the first informal meeting of the Ministers of European Affairs (GAC), during the Danish presidency of the EU Council in Copenhagen, she opened discussions on this issue, and "this communication is going in a positive direction."
They emphasize that Montenegro's commitment to implementing the obligations from the negotiation chapters clearly confirms the Government's determination and represents a message to European partners that the conditions are being created for the start of the preparation of the agreement.
"Although it is difficult to determine the exact date, the very beginning of the preparation will be strong evidence of the credibility of the enlargement policy and an additional incentive for Montenegro to decisively bring the negotiations to a close," the Ministry said.
EC: We are ready to support Montenegro in moving forward rapidly
When asked by "Vijesti" when the drafting of the accession agreement for Montenegro could begin, the European Commission responded that they were ready to support Montenegro in its ambition to move forward rapidly.
They said they welcomed the country's ambitious timeline for progress on its path towards EU accession and the closure of remaining chapters, and said that enlargement was and will remain a strategic priority, as emphasized by EC President Ursula von der Leyen in her political guidelines for the next Commission.
"The EC stands ready to support Montenegro in its ambition to move forward rapidly. The timeframe depends on Montenegro's ability to continue to make progress on the necessary reforms, which, as adopted and implemented, will enable the gradual closure of the chapters," they stated.
Accession Treaty after candidacy and negotiations
On the EU website, in the section related to enlargement, it says that the third step in the process is the drafting of an accession treaty - after candidacy and accession negotiations.
"Once negotiations are complete, the Commission gives its opinion on whether the candidate country is ready to become a member. If the EC recommends that it is ready, an accession treaty is prepared. This document specifies the terms and conditions of the country's membership in the EU," it states.
It adds that the accession treaty must then be approved by the Commission, the European Council and the European Parliament, before being signed and ratified by all EU member states and candidate countries.
“A candidate country officially joins the EU on the date specified in its accession treaty.”
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