Montenegrin PM Says Country Will Apply for EU Candidacy by Yr End – Media

There is no doubt that Montenegro is ready to apply for EU candicacy, Agence France Presse quoted Djukanovic as saying during his first visit to neighbouring Bosnia since Montenegro won independence in 2006.

"I am convinced that in the final talks with the French presidency [of the EU], we will reach an optimal solution that will enable us [...] to apply by the end of 2008," Djukanovic told journalists in Sarajevo after meeting with Bosnian counterpart Nikola Spiric.

The tiny Adriatic state has already postponed its application from June to December.

Montenegro's European prospects were boosted last October when the country of 620,000 people signed the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, which opened the way for the nation to apply for membership of the bloc.

Montenegro decided in a referendum held in May 2006 to restore its independence and break off from Serbia. The two states were tied in a loose union that replaced rump Yugoslavia in 2001.