Commission expert even without Lekić: MVP on rejecting Milatović's proposal

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) rejected the President's proposal. Jakov Milatović that the former foreign minister Miodrag Lekić be a member of the Demarcation Commission because he believes that its current composition, which includes representatives of competent state bodies and professional services, has the necessary “professional and institutional capacity” to carry out the planned tasks.

Responding to the question of why Milatović's proposal was not accepted, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told "Vijesti" yesterday that, given the complexity and sensitivity of the state border issue, the commission at this stage of its work functions as a professional and institutional body composed of representatives of competent authorities and expert services. Such an approach, according to them, aims to ensure the professional and impartial work of the commission, without creating the impression of politicization of the process.

"Accordingly, the current composition of the commission provides the necessary professional and institutional capacity to carry out the tasks defined by its mandate," the MFA claims.

They recall that the Government established a commission three months ago with the task of carrying out activities related to the demarcation and determination of the state border, as well as preparing the basis for concluding international border agreements. Its mandate, they add, includes all issues related to the borders of Montenegro, and not individual open issues or relations with any specific country.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that, upon completion of the "preparatory phase of work", the possibility of including additional experts, consultants, as well as representatives of international and non-governmental organizations in areas that are important for the work of that body will be considered.

"In this sense, all professional knowledge and relevant experiences that can contribute to the work of the commission will be valued and taken into account within the decision-making process in the negotiation phase. The Ministry's approach is not based on exclusion, but on openness and willingness to consider all relevant professional opinions that can contribute to this demanding process," the department it manages said. Ervin Ibrahimovic (Bosniak Party).

"Vijesti" yesterday, citing unofficial information, announced that Milatović's proposal to appoint Lekić was rejected and that the head of state is considering other potential candidates for a member of the commission, one of whom is a professor of public international law and a former judge of the European Court of Human Rights. Nebojsa Vučinić.

The Demarcation Commission, which was formed on March 12, has 27 members. In addition to representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it also includes, as the editorial office of that department told the editorial office, representatives of other state bodies and institutions “who, within their jurisdiction, have knowledge and experience relevant to issues of demarcation and determination of the state border.” The chairman of the commission is the State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Periša Kastratović.

At the end of May, Milatović requested a change in the decision to establish the commission, namely that Lekić be its member, stating that he did so considering the importance, complexity and sensitivity of the Prevlaka issue, i.e. the border with Croatia.

"Vijesti" learned that the president pointed out to the MFA, among other things, that Lekić was the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1992 to 1995, that in that capacity he participated in the London Conference (1992), that from 1993 to 1995 he participated in the peace conferences in Geneva dedicated to achieving peace in the former Yugoslavia, at which Prevlaka was also discussed. Milatović also stated that Lekić was the head of diplomacy when the UN Security Council (1992) adopted a resolution that established a special status for Cape Oštro-Prevlaka.

According to unofficial information from the editorial office, the MFA responded to Milatović's office that there had been meetings with those who were directly involved in the previous demarcation processes, and that these activities would continue, and that the MFA would send Lekić an invitation for a meeting with the members of the commission, in order to inform them of all the information it has and give them suggestions that are important for their work.

In addition, the department headed by Ibrahimović told Milatović's cabinet that, appreciating the importance and sensitivity of the demarcation issue, they believe it is important to avoid public assessments that could lead to the politicization of the demarcation process.

A few days after proposing Lekić, the president said he believed that Cape Oštro on Prevlaka should belong to Montenegro. This was met with a sharp reaction from Croatia, and so Vanda Babić Galić, Special Advisor to the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia Gordana Grlić Radman, said last week in an interview with "Slobodna Dalmacija" that it is understandable that Milatović's statement is seen as a step backwards, "because it evokes rhetoric from the time when Montenegro's territorial aspirations towards the Croatian south were accompanied by the clang of tanks."

"Expecting Croatia's support for the path towards membership in the European Union (EU), while at the same time claiming Croatian state territory, is at the very least in contradiction with European values ​​and thus does not contribute to Montenegro's European path," Babić Galić assessed.

The border between Montenegro and Croatia in the area of ​​the Prevlaka peninsula has been disputed since the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. Prevlaka is located at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor.

After the war conflicts of the 1990s, control over the disputed border zone on Prevlaka was taken over by UN observers - from 1996 to 2002. That year, the Protocol on the Temporary Border Regime was established.

According to the protocol, Croatia has the mainland part of the peninsula and a 550-meter sea zone at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor, while part of the waters along the left coast of the peninsula was declared “no man's sea.” This status has been maintained to this day.

The Badinter Commission, which dealt with issues of the borders of the former Yugoslavia, determined in 1992 that the republican borders as they were at the time of the dissolution of the former state are now the borders of the newly created states, that these borders are protected by international law and that they can only be changed by agreement between states.

The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, of which Montenegro was a part, recognized that state within internationally recognized borders, which included Prevlaka, in 1996, through the Agreement on the Normalization of Relations with Croatia.