November 6 (SeeNews) - The European Union on Tuesday told Montenegro to further reform its judicial system and intensify the fight against corruption to build on the progress achieved by the recent signing of a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the bloc and the adoption of a new constitution.
“Montenegro has achieved a lot in the past year,” EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn told a news conference in Brussels, presenting the Commission's 2007 progress report on Montenegro.
He said the SAA was a roadmap for the country's EU accession and welcomed the adoption of Montenegro's constitution, whcih is "broadly in line with European standards.”
Montenegro's European prospects were boosted on October 15 when the country of 620,000 people signed the SAA , which opens the way for the nation to apply for membership of the bloc. A week later, Montenegro's first constitution since the country restored its independence came into force, an event seen as an important milestone on the further road to EU membership for the tiny Adriatic republic.
Montenegro decided in a referendum held in May last year to restore its independence and separate from Serbia. The two states were tied in a loose union that replaced rump Yugoslavia in 2001.
The country should now concentrate on strengthening its judicial system and on fighting corruption, Rehn said.
Among the ex-Yugoslav states, Croatia and Macedonia have also signed SAAs as European Union hopefuls, while Slovenia joined the EU in 2004. Rehn said on Tuesday that the EU will initial an SAA with Serbia on Wednesday, while Bosnia is yet to reform its police force as a must before signing the SAA. Serbia and Bosnia are the only Western Balkan countries who haven’t signed the agreement yet.