Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Prime Minister of Montenegro Milojko Spajić to NATO Headquarters on Friday (26 January 2024). They discussed preparations for the upcoming Washington Summit and continued efforts to bolster the Alliance's deterrence and defence.
The Secretary General outlined Montenegro's contributions to Allied security, including deploying troops to multinational battlegroups in Bulgaria and Latvia. Montenegro also contributes to "building more effective and inclusive security forces" as a part of NATO's training mission in Iraq, he added.
Mr Stoltenberg stressed Montenegro's critical role in securing stability in the Western Balkans. He welcomed the Prime Minister's strong commitments to reform, as well as Montenegro's path to Euro-Atlantic integration. Condemning last year's outbreaks of violence in Kosovo, the Secretary General highlighted NATO's swift response, "deploying 1,000 additional troops and heavy armour." He underscored that NATO is "committed to ensuring that KFOR continues to fulfil its UN mandate."
The Secretary General also noted that NATO ambassadors will visit Sarajevo next week, calling this "a demonstration of strong support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia-Herzegovina."
On support for Ukraine, Mr Stoltenberg thanked Montenegro for its contributions through NATO's Comprehensive Assistance Package (CAP) and urged Allies to continue stepping up support for Ukraine at this critical time.
Looking ahead to the upcoming Washington Summit, the Secretary General said "Sweden's entry into NATO will make the whole Alliance stronger." He thanked President Erdoğan for swiftly signing the recent ratification of Sweden's NATO membership by the Turkish Grand National Assembly, "and I look forward to Hungary's ratification as soon as the parliament reconvenes," he said.
