Until May this year Montenegro had been in a state union with Serbia and they had jointly held the SAA negotiations until the EC suspended them over Serbia's insufficient cooperation with the Hague war crimes tribunal. In July the Council of the EU approved a mandate for the EC to hold separate negotiations with Montenegro.
Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn today called on Montenegro to continue with reforms and the strengthening of the rule of law, saying they were Montenegro's main challenges after Sunday's successful parliamentary elections, the first since Montenegro gained independence.
Rehn said in a note it was very important to reach a broad consensus on the adoption of a new constitution and all the necessary reforms, notably regarding freedom, the judiciary and security. He added that in the context of European integration it was very important to improve institutional capacities.
Rehn also said he was pleased to note that, according to the first reports from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Sunday's elections were held in keeping with international standards.
Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic said today his coalition won an absolute majority.