September 3, 2018 - "It is a fact that the way of using the euro as the official means of payment in Montenegro differs from the way that the euro is used by the members of the Economic and Monetary Union. In this regard, we are determinately working to fulfill the criteria of convergence for the accession to the eurozone during the negotiation process, with their specific modifications in the case of Montenegro," explained Aleksandar Drljević, the head of the Montenegrin Office for European integration.
Applying European regulations and standards in Chapter 17- Economic and Monetary Policy will contribute to ensuring price stability and increasing competitiveness of the economy, which ensures maintaining macroeconomic security, said the chief negotiator with the European Union (EU), Aleksandar Drljević. Through the establishment and implementation of European policies and procedures, we will improve the overall economic environment, which will affect the social development and quality of life of citizens. Also, we will prepare the Montenegrin economy to be an equal partaker in the implementation of the joint economic policy, Drljevic explained in an interview with the Mina-Business Agency.
Commenting on the specifics in the EU negotiations on Chapter 17, considering the existing monetary regime of Montenegro that has been using the euro as the official means of payment since 2002, Drljević said that the use of the euro is not called into question. He recalled that the EU regulatory requirements regarding the use of the euro were met, as noted by the European Commission (EC) Progress Report on Montenegro in Chapter 32, the part related to the protection of the euro against counterfeiting. Drljević announced that the opening of Chapter 17 was an acknowledgment that Montenegro had fulfilled the expectations of the EU in that area, and made progress that the Union had expected at that stage of the negotiations.
"Further harmonization with European regulations and strengthening of administrative capacities for their efficient and high-quality application is what Montenegro is going towards in the coming period. In this regard, the main challenge is changing the amendment of the Constitution, at the request of the EC, in order to harmonize the plans of the Montenegrin Central Bank with the plans of the European System of Central Banks," Drljević explained.
In addition, Montenegro is expected to make additional efforts with its progress on strengthening fiscal stability and meeting the requirements of the market economy. Drljević believes that in this regard, a special challenge will be the implementation of statistical standards ESA2010, which is supported by experts from EU member states.
"There are many challenges and plenty of work on this journey for Montenegro. Having in mind the significance of this chapter for the Montenegrin economy, we have already undertaken the work on the required activities. We will continue with the implementation and improvement of those activities in the future in order to achieve further economic and financial growth, through strengthening the economic activity and competitiveness of the Montenegrin economy," Drljević said.
When asked how Montenegro can respond to the challenges of closing Chapter 17, Drvljević replied that the final benchmarks relate to further harmonization with European criteria in that area. "The challenges of fulfilling criteria for Chapter 17 are very demanding which will probably lead to the situation in which we will close this chapter among the last. On the other hand, we will leave enough time to respond well to all obligations and prepare for future membership," said Drljević.
When it comes to monetary policy, he reminded that through the enactment of amendments of the Law on Montenegrin Central Bank System and through current affairs with foreign countries, the concept of independence of Montenegrin Central Bank is now fully applied. "Also, by adopting amendments of the Law on CBM and the new Decisions on Bank Liquidity Requirements, we completely implemented the concept of banning monetary financing of the public sector," Drljević said.
As he said, in the coming period, Montenegro will continue to harmonize the legal framework with the aim of fully applying the concept of prohibition of public sector’s privileged access to financial institutions and full integration of the CBM into the European System of Central Banks.
The article was written with financial support from the European Union through the implementation of the project "Dealing with ethics and fake news" under the code IPA2018/397-252. Content is the sole responsibility of the MINA Agency and may not necessarily reflect the views of the EU. Text can be downloaded with mandatory source reference.
