Milatović invited political leaders to a meeting: "Take steps to accelerate the EU path"

Montenegrin President Jakov Milatović announced that he would propose a change to the Constitution, so that laws that the president returns to the Parliament in the second round must be adopted by a qualified majority.

He said that Montenegro is facing an institutional and political crisis and that, as far as he is concerned, the meeting with political leaders could take place "as soon as tomorrow", and that the invitation was made while the press conference was in progress.

"The opposition has abandoned parliamentary functions, the civil sector has rebelled against legal solutions," Milatović said at a press conference.

He explained why he returned the adopted amendments to the Law on Internal Affairs and the National Security Agency to parliament.

"Although the goal is justified - fighting corruption, the public is rightly concerned that these laws could lead to the persecution of dissenters."

He also says that the parliamentary Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform "no longer exists."

"This is a red alert, because there are only a few months left for the process to be completed ahead of next year's elections. As a result, it is obvious that the pace of closing chapters is slower than planned. At the end of last year, the process was momentarily blocked. Instead of the planned six, we closed two chapters this year," Milatović notes.

He proposed seven steps to "remove the blockade and accelerate the EU path":

"Adoption of the law on the National Security Agency and internal affairs, which is fully in line with the EU; return of the opposition to the work of parliamentary committees; election of two judges of the Constitutional Court as a key step towards the full functionality of the institution that guarantees constitutional order; renewal of the work of the Committee for Comprehensive Electoral Reform; determination of a clear agenda for parliamentary work by the end of the year, so as not to get into a situation where laws are passed by mere show of hands - the agenda must be known by the end of this year; intensification of dialogue with Croatia, but with a clear negotiating position - without meetings for the sake of meetings, but with a clear position that is statesmanlike, and in the pursuit of unblocking Chapter 31; formation of a state council for EU integration that would bring together the highest officials, including the President of the state, the Government, the Parliament, representatives of the opposition, but also all relevant factors, in order to ensure unity on this topic," Milatović listed.

He points out that the initiative comes in anticipation of his visit to Cyprus. "Cyprus currently holds the presidency of the Council of the EU. If this idea were to be realized, we could announce the start of the EU accession treaty," he pointed out.

When asked by journalists whether he had had communication with European authorities regarding these laws, Milatović said that he had regular communication, and that, unlike some who talk to officials, he had communication with decision-makers.

He pointed out that "you can't make North Korea and then go to the EU, because these laws make the state North Korea," and that his legal team sent an analysis of the Internal Affairs and ANB laws to all MPs, but that he had not received a single legal argument about it.

"The goal is right, but the means are wrong. Ask all the MPs who voted for these laws - would they have voted for them if they were in the opposition? Because whoever does not vote from the opposition benches should not vote from the government benches either, because tomorrow they will be in the opposition. I thought that the actors of the new government would teach them the mistakes of the actors of the old one," he said.

When asked what he expects to happen by tomorrow, given that these laws will be in parliament tomorrow, and what responses he has received from international sources about these laws, Milatović said that the great measure of concern is not from the EU, but from citizens, and that it was up to him to propose steps to "break the blockade", but also that, if he had the will, he could hold a meeting tomorrow morning, and if not, to explain why he was not there.

When asked whether he expects support from government and opposition leaders, Milatović said that "if they are working for European integration - yes."

Asked what he would do if the laws were adopted again, he said he would do what "is prescribed by the Constitution."