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The United States of America supports Nei Gorra’s intention to develop an anti-corruption strategy, the Chargé d’affaires ad interim of the Permanent Council in Vienna wrote. Catherine User Report of the Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro Dominic Wager.
Catherine Brucker, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim of the Vienna Permanent Council, said VAG’s partnership with the Montenegrin government was crucial for the organization and for Montenegro’s European aspirations.
“We wish Montenegro all the best in its goal of becoming the 28th member of the European Union by 2028. Montenegro is a great ally of the United States and NATO and a vibrant multiethnic democracy. You and your team were an integral part of Montenegro’s successful implementation of important national reforms. Your involvement in Parliament, training Parliamentary Committee and National Election Commission staff to conduct voter education activities, and training staff on election day helped build more resilient democratic institutions. The 2023 elections were highly contested, well-run, and respectful of fundamental freedoms. The peaceful transition of power following the elections showed the value of your efforts,” said Brooke.
As she said, they welcomed the focus on implementing electoral reforms recommended by ODIHR, including increasing electoral transparency and ensuring that persons with disabilities could vote.
“We also support your work with Montenegrin authorities and press self-regulatory bodies to suppress hate speech while respecting freedom of expression, and your efforts to increase media capacity and transparency and journalist safety. The United States recognizes the steps Montenegro has taken in the fight against corruption, which is critical to economic growth and development. We support Montenegro’s intent to develop a national anti-corruption strategy. The government has also made significant reforms to the rule of law, including the adoption of 12 laws and amendments to strengthen anti-corruption legislation and increase judicial independence,” Brooke noted.
He said the NGO sector is a key aspect of Montenegro’s democratic resilience, stability and ability to resist malign foreign influence.
“Including Russia’s efforts to sow division and fuel instability through influence operations and disinformation campaigns. Your team’s engagement with civil society partners helps maintain this advantage. We know how difficult it is to effectively implement your mandate without a single budget. What your team has achieved is even more impressive given the financial constraints. We once again call on all delegations to approve the Chairperson’s proposal for a unified budget for 2024,” Brook told Dominik Vag, head of the OSCE delegation to Montenegro.
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