Croatia's Stance Blocks EU Accession Progress for Montenegro

Croatia remains the sole EU member state blocking progress in the accession negotiations with Montenegro, specifically concerning the closure of Chapter 31. This position has stalled advancements for 19 months, making Croatia's support crucial for Montenegro's EU path.

The upcoming session in the EU Council, referred to informally as 'Super Tuesday,' is anticipated to be a pivotal day for enlargement talks. In the Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper), ambassadors from the 27 member states agreed that Ukraine and Moldova would open a new cluster of negotiations, Albania would close three chapters, and Montenegro would close two.

However, the European Commission, along with influential member states like France, Spain, Italy, and Germany, had hoped to see Serbia also make its first move in four years of stalled negotiations. The primary obstacle preventing this broader advancement appears to be Croatia's continued reluctance regarding Montenegro's Chapter 31, leaving Serbia's progress in limbo as well.