Minister Kotromanović meets Montenegrin Prime Minister and Defence Minister

The emphasis of the ministerial meeting was placed on the progress achieved by Montenegro in its Euro-Atlantic integration and the completion of the reforms demanded for NATO invitation by late 2015. The Croatian side pledged to provide wider support  to Montenegro in all accession domains.
The two delegations also considered the continued joint deployment in international operations, including Afghanistan, as it proved as an optimal way for the Army of Montenegro to build interoperability with NATO miltaries. 
Minister Kotromanović reiterated the readiness of Croatia, as a NATO and the EU nation, to continute its support to Montenegro on its path to integration, which, said the Minister, should arrive in a near term, in the interest of both NATO and the countries in the region. The joint deployment to ISAF demonstrated the excellent co-operation between the Croatian and the Montenegrin ministries, said the Minister.

The Montenegrin Defence Minister recalled the intensified co-operation between the two ministries over the past years, crowned by joint deployment to ISAF: The meeting signalled the readiness to continue the engagement in the Resolute Support in a similar format. “I find it highly useful to exchange views with the Croatian side on the next steps awaiting Montenegro on its path to integration“, said Minister Pejanović-Đurišić, appreciating the openness and co-operability of Croatian officials in that regard.

The ministers also addressed the future bilateral co-operation in a number of fields, to include education of Montenegrin personell in Croatian military education institutions, the inter-service co-operation of the two Armed Forces, the co-operation in disaster response and the multi-national projects and initiative such as the BRAAD, the MATC and ADRION LIVEX. The meeting was an occasion to sign the Agreement on Education of Cadets of the Army of Montenegro in the Croatian military study programmes (Military Engineering and Military Management. Croatian Minister emphasised the importance of the education systems and of investing into the human resources potential as the main asset of the small countries. 

During the talks with the Prime Minister, Milo Đukanović, the two sides emphasised the good bilateral relations and the pre-accession assistance provided by Croatia to Montenegro.
Minister Kotromanović expressed the hope of Montenegro receiving NATO membership soon as an important contribution to stability and security in South-east Europe, considering also the global security threats.
The Montenegrin Prime Minister Đukanović extended the appreciation to Croatia for the support provided to its country  and stated that Montenegro was committed to join Croatia in promoting the co-operation among their neighbours.