Montenegro will close another negotiation chapter on Monday.
As announced by the Government, the intergovernmental conference between Montenegro and the European Union, at which Montenegro will close Chapter 32, will be held in Brussels on January 26.
"This is more than good news for Montenegro. With a strong wind at our back, we are entering the most important year on our integration path," said Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorčević after today's Government session.
Chapter 32 - Financial Supervision refers to the adoption of internationally accepted standards in the areas of public internal financial control, external audit and EU best practices and their application to the entire public sector, discipline and transparency in the use of national and EU funds.
Gorčević, the Government announced, pointed to the very positive attitude of Cyprus, which holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union, and which, as she pointed out, by scheduling the Intergovernmental Conference with Montenegro in January, confirms its commitment to fulfilling the goal of Montenegro's membership in the Union by 2028.
"And not only Cyprus as the presiding member, but also all other member states of the European Union, by voting to close another chapter with Montenegro already at the beginning of the year, truly confirm their commitment to the enlargement and strengthening of the European Union. Thus, the member states are also very clearly expressing their determination for Montenegro to become the 28th member by 2028," said Gorčević.
The Government announced that the closure of Chapter 32 – Financial Supervision represents an important step forward for Montenegro on its path towards membership in the European Union:
"And a clear signal of the European Union's confidence in the ability of our institutions to protect the financial interests of the state and the EU, and to manage public funds responsibly and transparently. This is another chapter from Cluster 1 - Fundamental Rights, by closing which we are further strengthening the overall credibility of the reform process. This success comes after the closing of Chapter 5 - Public Procurement, in which the European Commission recognized the maturity of the system and the concrete results of the reforms, confirming the high level of trust in Montenegrin institutions when it comes to control and transparency of the spending of public money. By closing Chapter 32, Montenegro is taking an important step forward towards fulfilling the final criteria for closing Cluster 1, which also includes the key chapters 23 and 24, as well as the statistics chapter, which represent the foundation of the entire negotiation process," the Government announced.
It was explained that the special importance of this chapter is reflected in the improvement of the internal financial control system, strengthening the independence and capacities of the State Audit Institution, and protecting the financial interests of the EU and the euro from counterfeiting.
"Which further confirms the European Union's trust in our institutional framework and ability to assume the obligations of membership. By establishing the budget inspection, we have further strengthened control over the spending of public funds and sent a clear message that the protection of financial operations and public money is one of the key priorities of the Government of Montenegro," it was announced.
Bonus video:
