NATO invited Montenegro to join the alliance

The member countries of the North Atlantic Alliance approved the decision to begin negotiations on the entry of Montenegro into NATO, the Alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said.

The parties called the decision “historic”

“Foreign ministers have taken a historic decision to begin the process of negotiations for Montenegro to become the 29th member of our alliance,” he said at a meeting of the North Atlantic Council on Wednesday, December 2.

In turn, Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro Igor Luksic also called this day historic for his country, noting that today Montenegro and NATO are “opening a new chapter for deeper and closer ties as allies.”

“This is very important for the stability and security of the Western Balkans. I believe that every step we take towards EU membership and NATO membership has an impact on all our neighbors, regardless of their desire or reluctance to join NATO. But we are convinced that this will have a positive impact on neighboring countries. And we will see this positive impact in the near future,” Luksic said.

At the same time, he stressed that the country intends to continue reforms. “An invitation does not mean the end of the process, it is only the beginning of a new stage. And we will continue reforms. We understand our obligations and are ready to carry out the work we have begun. Next, we intend to reform the rule of law, fight crime, corruption, and also work to build support for our membership,” he emphasized.

The Kremlin said that “NATO expansion will not go unanswered”

The prospect of Montenegro joining NATO was negatively perceived by the Russian authorities. The Russian Foreign Ministry has previously announced that they will try to dissuade the country from joining the alliance.

The start of the negotiations has already been commented on in the Kremlin. As Vladimir Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov said, this NATO decision “cannot but lead to retaliatory actions from the east, that is, from the Russian side,” explaining this by the need to “maintain parity of interests.”

However, Peskov noted that there are no official statements by the head of the Kremlin on this matter: “the priorities are different now.” In turn, Stoltenberg emphasized that in the matter of Montenegro joining the alliance, there can be no question of interference from third parties: “The decision to invite Montenegro to become a full member of NATO does not concern Russia.” “If Russian intervention leads to anything, it will be that on our part there will be an increased desire to invite Montenegro to become a full member of the alliance,” the NATO Secretary General previously said.

The alliance's decision on Montenegro confirms that "NATO's doors are open" to admit new members, Stoltenberg said. “Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia and Macedonia are also showing progress towards NATO membership,” he told reporters.

Earlier, the Wall Street Journal wrote that NATO was hesitant about Montenegro's membership due to fear of Russia. “This could anger Moscow and confirm its perception of Western expansion. But a refusal could become confirmation that Russia has the right to block countries’ accession to the Alliance,” the article says. The United States has previously stated its readiness to support Podgorica's membership in NATO, subject to continued reforms and strengthening public support for joining the Alliance.

Earlier, the Forum wrote that US presidential candidate among the Democrats Bernie Sanders urged to create an analogue of NATO with Russian participation as an important step towards the destruction of the Islamic State.