After the meeting, OSCE PA President Christine Muttonen expressed pleasure with very good talks, saying that participation of Montenegro was very important as well as joint work at resolving the problems in the region and all other problems of the OSCE PA.
OSCE Secretary General Mr Lamberto Zannier, inter alia, reiterated positive assessment with regard to preparation and holding of the October elections, and expressed firm position that the opposition parties should return to the Parliament and continue there their fight for achieving political goals.
Summarizing participation in the OSCE PA Winter Meeting, the President of the Parliament said that his interlocutors had general impression of Montenegro's noticeable progress in integration and reform processes, and that foreign policy priorities towards the European Union and NATO were the right choice. He said that it was generally expected that Montenegro would be a new member of NATO very soon, and that there were no problems on Montenegro’s the path towards the EU.
- When it comes to domestic issues, our need to reform the system internally has been recognised, and our good neighbourhood policy and multinational harmony will be awarded in the European framework. The overall conclusion is that the organisation of parliamentary elections in Montenegro was officially evaluated as very positive and that all parties should work together to contribute to reform and integration processes of Montenegro. None of the interlocutors had a positive attitude about the boycott of the parliament, considering the parliament to be the only place for conducting dialogue.
Finally, it was confirmed that Montenegro, as an active participant in all international parliamentary organisations, can significantly contribute to their work, President Brajović said.
During the day, a meeting was held with the Head of the German delegation and OSCE PA Treasurer Ms Doris Barnet, who said that Montenegro was the "heart of Europe". She expressed surprise that, despite the positive report of the ODIHR, there were political parties that challenge the legitimacy of the elections only because they have not won.
Vice President of the Parliament Mr Branimir Gvozdenović also attended the meetings.
Day two of the OSCE PA Winter Meeting in Vienna was marked by a discussion on current challenges in the OSCE field, with special emphasis on the respect of human rights and efforts for resolving burning conflicts via mediation. During the joint meeting of the committees, it was noted that the comprehensiveness of ideas and common guidelines, provided by the OSCE, help achieve multilateral objectives. With the emphasis on improving cooperation with the executive structures of the OSCE, it was concluded that the respect of human rights contributed to the security of society and ensured stability.
A joint session of three committees was preceded by a session of the Committee on Political Affairs and Security, during which the rapporteurs presented key aspects of the report which will be subject to approval at the Annual Session in July. Discussion that followed covered topics such as: prevention of cyber terrorism, the role of women in peace-building in terms of improving dialogue and the fight against transnational threats, and efforts to de-escalation ongoing Ukrainian conflict.
Among the senior OSCE officials on a two-day meeting, the participants were addressed by Secretary General Mr Lamberto Zannier, Director of the ODIHR Michael Link and the President of the OSCE PA.
In addition to President Ivan Brajović, the Permanent Delegation of the Parliament of Montenegro to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly consisted of: Vice President of the Parliament Mr Branimir Gvozdenović, and MPs Ms Aleksandra Vuković and Mr Nikola Rakočević.
After the meeting with the Delegation of the Parliament of Montenegro, OSCE PA President Christine Muttonen said:
- We had a very interesting meeting, very good talks. The Parliamentary Assembly is very pleased that Montenegro takes such an effort in taking part in all our sessions and in our work. So, we are very glad about that, and I am very pleased that the Speaker of the Parliament and Deputy Speaker are here today. We talked about difficult situation in the region, we talked about difficult situation in general in the OSCE region. The Parliamentary Assembly has the possibility to create platforms, to offer platforms, where we can meet and talk and try to find solutions for those problems. So, in that sense, it is very important that we all have come together here and worked together, and I look forward to future meetings also with the delegation from Montenegro. Thank you very much.
OSCE Secretary General Mr Lamberto Zannier assessed that the meeting with President Ivan Brajović was very good, and that they reviewed the situation in Montenegro:
- We had a very good meeting with the Speaker of the Parliament. We reviewed the situation in Montenegro. I myself visited Montenegro before the elections. I made sure that we work very closely with the State Election Commission, to prepare those elections. We monitored them. I’ve seen the Report of the Mission. The assessment is a positive one. The elections were held very well, and there are some recommendations on certain improvements, which we will be working now with the Mission and their Office in Warsaw, to assists Montenegro to improve further electoral system. In general, the cooperation is good, the Office is aligning its activities to the requirements of Montenegro. The element of concern that I have is to see that there are some political forces that are boycotting the Parliament. and I think, personally, that this is not a positive development. Whenever there are differences, it is important those differences are discussed, and that there is a political debate, and the place for political debate is the parliament. So, boycotting the Parliament is never a good idea. Even when there is a very difficult political debate, it is important for democracy to function properly, for this debate to take place in the parliament. So, I hope that the right way can be found, so that all sides are engaged, where they can discuss the differences and work together for the positive future of Montenegro, Mr Zannier said.
VIDEO:
Youtube: Statement by President of the Parliament Mr Ivan Brajović
Cloud: Statement by President of the Parliament Mr Ivan Brajović
Youtube: Statement by OSCE Secretary General Mr Lamberto Zannier
Cloud Statement by OSCE Secretary General Mr Lamberto Zannier
Youtube: Statement by OSCE PA President Christine Muttonen
Cloud: Statement by OSCE PA President Christine Muttonen
Video coverage OSCE PA, day two
Youtube: https://youtu.be/0uSDJ4nNA4M
Cloud:http://207.38.84.154/owncloud/index.php/s/CdpXEcSpCthDuJN
