Krapović with Hajdinjak: Strengthening Defense Cooperation and Slovenia's Support for Montenegro's European Path

Montenegrin Minister of Defense, Dragan Krapović, met with Slovenian Minister of Defense, Valentina Hajdinjak, on the margins of the defense ministers' meeting within the framework of the Central European and Western Balkans Defense Cooperation (CEDC+WB). In this context, he emphasized that existing regional initiatives, which implement projects contributing to the improvement and modernization of capacities, as well as understanding and building trust among countries, are of great importance for the stability of our region. The Minister also thanked Slovenia for its continuous support to Montenegro on its EU integration path and announced that Montenegro is fully aligning its foreign and security policy with the European Union and conducting intensive and comprehensive reforms to become part of the European family by 2028. He stated that modernization of the Montenegrin Army's capacities is an absolute priority and expressed satisfaction that through a joint procurement project with Slovenia, they have significantly strengthened their defense capabilities. Krapović also highlighted the cooperation between Montenegro and Slovenia within NATO, emphasizing the importance of continuing joint contributions to strengthening the Alliance's eastern borders, primarily within the battalion in Latvia, where members of our Army are deployed as part of the Slovenian contingent. He praised Montenegro's progress on its EU accession journey, seeing the country as the next member, and added that Slovenia's support on this path can be expected to continue.