June 20, 2018 - A conference of the Subcommittee on the Internal Market and Competition between Montenegro and the European Commission was held in Brussels on June 20, 2018. The main subject of the conference was Montenegrin progress towards joining the European Union.
Montenegro's accession to the European Union is a process in which Montenegro seeks to join the European Union as a full member. Montenegro applied for membership in the European Union on December 15, 2008.
The conference was opened by the Deputy Head of the Unit for Montenegro in the General Directorate for Neighborhood Policy and Negotiations on the Enlargement of Barbara Jesus-Gimeno and Director-General for Internal Market and Competition at the Ministry of Economy Biljana Jakić. According to the conclusions of the conference, Montenegrin institutions continue to improve the situation in the seven negotiating chapters for EU accession. The meeting reviewed the progress achieved in the areas covered by the following chapters: Right of establishment and freedom to provide services, Free movement of capital, Public procurement, Company law, Intellectual Property Law, Competition policy, Financial Services and Consumer and health protection.
Director-General for Internal Market and Competition at the Ministry of Economy, Ms. Jakić explained the main Montenegrin activities towards the completion of all conditions for EU membership, especially the closure of chapters of the acquis: “We are working on alignment with EU regulations, as well as implementing legislation in order to fulfill all initial and final criteria for opening or closing chapters that are covered by this Sub-Committee”.
According to the reports from the conference, Montenegrin representatives presented the progress the country has made in the alignment of national legislation with the acquis, as well as strengthening institutional and administrative capacities in order to adequately implement European standards. Representatives of the European Commission praised the progress that Montenegro has made in the negotiation process in the chapters that are the subject of this Subcommittee. In the previous period, Chapter 3 (Right of establishment and freedom to provide services) has been opened and progress has been noted, especially in the areas of Competition and Intellectual Property.
At the ending of the conference, the representatives of the European Commission and Montenegro reached the conclusion that important work on alignment and preparation for the implementation of the acquis has taken place in most areas and that strengthening the administrative capacity for ensuring the application of the acquis remains a substantial challenge for Montenegro.
