Arriving Andrije Mandić (New Serbian Democracy) to the head of the Montenegrin Parliament, Western countries formed a kind of “cordon sanitaire” around the head of parliament. Although Mandić made mistakes in his first year in office, he has since softened his rhetoric, and changing geopolitical circumstances have led to the loosening of the cordon in which he found himself.
So the journalist Željko Pantelić for "Vijesti" he comments on the "polishing" of Mandić's image in the West - from the fact that he did not receive a congratulatory message from any important Western address after being elected as the first man of the highest legislative house in late October 2023 - to the "tour" of the United States of America (USA) and Great Britain two years later.
About ten days after being voted the first man of the parliament with the support of 49 MPs, Mandić organized a reception on the occasion of the Day of Parliamentarism. None of the ambassadors of the Quinte countries (USA, France, Germany, Great Britain and Italy) and the Delegation of the European Union (EU) attended the event. From the NATO member countries, only one ambassador attended the ceremony - Baris Kalkavan (Turkey).
The Quint countries and the EU Delegation did not congratulate Mandić on his election to the position of Speaker of the Parliament, they opposed the entry of Mandić's coalition For the Future of Montenegro (ZBCG) into power, and the US Embassy sent a message that this alliance, which was against the country's membership in NATO and the recognition of Kosovo's independence, was not a partner for them.
However, Mandić's "pro-European" stance and the changing trends in global politics have influenced the West to "soften" its stance towards the head of the Parliament.
He had meetings with ambassadors of the Quint countries and the EU Delegation, and spoke with the President of the European Parliament. Robert Metsolom, and in early November he paid an official visit to the USA, where he met, among others, with a Republican congresswoman. Ellis StefanikShe is close to the MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement, whose informal leader is the US President. Donald tramp.
Mandić's last trip was to Great Britain - where he stayed at the invitation of the Speaker of the House of Commons of that country's parliament. Lindsay Hoyle, who also welcomed him to the session of the legislative body he presides over. In addition to Hoyle, he also met with the leader of the House of Lords, Lord John McFaul.
Mandić's office did not respond to "Vijesti"'s question about whether the head of parliament believes that his "pro-European" messages, such as the one that he will carry the opposition in the EU on his back, are slowly opening the door to high-profile positions in the West.
Corrected the dictionary
Pantelić states that at the beginning of Mandić's mandate, within the Euro-Atlantic framework, a kind of "cordon sanitaire" was created around him.
He assessed that Mandić made a few wrong moves in his first year at the head of parliament - such as appearing at the celebration of the election victory at the headquarters of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) in Belgrade in mid-December 2023 and receiving the then president of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian entity Republika Srpska. Milorad Dodik in the Parliament of Montenegro without the symbols of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"... As well as a series of statements and moves that were not in line with the coalition partners' agreement, including the adoption of the Resolution on Jasenovac," he added.
After the adoption of the Resolution on Genocide in the Jasenovac, Dachau and Mauthausen Camp System at the end of June 2024, Mandić was declared an undesirable person in Croatia, along with the Deputy Prime Minister. Aleks Bečić (Democrats) and a member of parliament from the Democratic People's Party Milan Knežević.
At the beginning of the year, Mandić congratulated the unconstitutional Republika Srpska Day, and at the end of September he attended a military parade in Belgrade...
Pantelić points out that the first man in parliament "corrected" the vocabulary and reduced the number of wrong moves.
"Also, time has shown that he has not gotten any closer to either Belgrade or Moscow. Despite the regular traps set, primarily by members of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), regarding identity issues, relations with NATO, and Russia, Mandić has more or less successfully avoided them," the source noted.
Former Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia Alexander Vulin, close to the president of that country Aleksandar Vučić, recently criticized Mandić. Regarding the decision for Montenegro to send soldiers to the NATO mission to assist Ukraine, Vulin said that some Montenegrin Serbs voted for it “out of necessity”, but that Mandić's New Serbian Democracy cast the decisive votes, which is “not a reason for surprise, but for disgust”.
"Maybe some embassy would deny them an invitation to a cocktail party, Mandić might be replaced, and they would be given a minus in Brussels," he added.
Pantelić also notes that changing geopolitical circumstances have contributed to the "cordon sanitaire" starting to loosen.
"... Especially since we no longer have an administration in Washington that is a friend of European integration and enlargement, but is increasingly openly on the side of sovereigntist and populist forces whose goal is to return the EU to the level of a customs union and a single market, without any other political weight or significance," he explains.
He pointed out that it was paradoxical that the US in the past, before the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and especially before the return of Trump, had always been much more rigid about the entry of parties from the former Democratic Front (DF) into power, adding that there had been a new balancing of forces and realignment.
"In the Union itself, we have many politicians in power in important European countries whose views are much more problematic than Mandić's," said the interlocutor.
Trump in the USA, Mandić in Montenegro
Pantelić believes that Mandić's performances "clearly reveal a desire" to be accredited as an acceptable politician for Western partners. He said that the head of parliament, given that he is an experienced politician, is clear that if he wants to one day become prime minister or occupy an important ministerial position - he must be acceptable, that is, meet the minimum.
"In the case of Montenegro, this specifically means: not calling into question the recognition of Kosovo and Montenegro's membership in NATO, continuing one hundred percent compliance with foreign policy with the EU, and generally respecting the basic postulates on which every state based on the rule of law is based," added Pantelić.
He stressed that in Europe there is a certain amount of flexibility and giving second chances, "especially when one comes to power and shows the will to act constructively within the European family," saying that the examples of the Italian Prime Minister George Meloni or the former Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras quite indicative, and they come from two diametrically opposed political positions.
"... The wars have ended in the former Yugoslavia and we have now entered a phase of shades of 'gray', where all forms of extremism are much easier to mimic, but it is also much easier to change sides, provided that it still exists," said the long-time journalist.
He said that Mandić has recently demonstrated a quality that few leaders possess, stating that it is about recognizing the dominant sentiment among the majority of citizens as a "member of the opposing camp" and giving it political form, despite the fact that it is "not originally yours."
Pantelić pointed out that what Mandić is doing in Montenegro was done on a much larger scale by Trump in America.
"Despite being a member of the establishment, a New Yorker, rich, privileged, with wives, former and current, who are European, Trump has imposed himself as the leader of the average American from the Midwest who felt like a loser of globalization, a victim of America's role as the world's policeman and a taxpayer who pays for Europeans to have a month or more of vacation, to have free healthcare and to retire at 60," he underlined.
He assessed that Trump's strength lies in the fact that he is not emotionally involved in the idea he represents and has no empathy for it, and that this is why he can be cold-blooded, unpredictable, and ruthless.
"So, just as the enormously wealthy Trump represents poor and 'disenfranchised' Americans, so Mandić represents the European idea, for extremely rational reasons and without empathy, and that is why he can be more successful than others," explained Pantelić.
According to him, the real problem could arise if Mandić, like Trump, takes over the ruling majority and truly becomes the central figure of the Montenegrin government, but realistically, that is unlikely to happen.
"Eyes are wide open in fear, which is why those who are afraid of Mandić, even when that fear has a rational basis, exaggerate his importance, often with the intention of profiting from that fear," the interviewee stated.
The prime minister's chair is a real test
Željko Pantelić said that it depends on Mandić how he will be treated in the West, and that in essence, presidents of state parliaments do not have "rich" international agendas.
He assessed that the real test for the head of parliament would be if he became prime minister or took on an important ministerial position (foreign affairs, defense, economy, finance...).
"When high-ranking statesmen visit, they rarely meet with parliament speakers, and it is very rare for parliament speakers to go on official visits to other countries. There are occasional meetings with speakers of other parliaments, but that all takes a back seat," he explained.
When asked how important it is for Mandić to gather support in the West, in terms of his political positions in Montenegro, Pantelić replied that in the conversations he has had with European officials and diplomats about the Western Balkans and Montenegro, he always hears a position that has the same message:
“We are interested in actions and results, not propaganda from anyone.”
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