"The independence referendum in Montenegro is an important European signal: after the tragic developments in the Balkans in the 1990s, this referendum shows that the peoples of the region have learnt from the past and are now taking their decisions about the future peacefully and democratically", Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik, President of the Council, declared today concerning the independence referendum in Montenegro.
According to the minister, this is also in part thanks to the efforts of the European Union. The EU, in particular Javier Solana and his personal representative for Montenegro, Miroslav Lajčák, had made a decisive contribution to ensuring the parties were able to agree democratic ground rules as a basis for deciding freely on their destiny.
“The voting arrangements negotiated by the EU with all the relevant political forces ensured an unprecedented election participation rate of over 86% and a calm, orderly course of the referendum campaign. This has given this referendum legitimacy. The European Union assumes the result of the vote is accepted by all political forces in the country and in the region, as it will, of course, also be accepted by the EU", Plassnik said, noting that the OSCE referendum observation mission and the parliamentary delegations from the OSCE, the Council of Europe and the European Parliament have all confirmed the referendum's conformity with international democratic standards.
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