Croatia blocks closure of negotiating chapters, putting Montenegro’s 2028 EU bid at risk

Croatia has again blocked the closure of several EU negotiating chapters for Montenegro, putting into doubt Podgorica’s target of joining the European Union by 2028.

Bilaterals stall the accession timetable

The planned intergovernmental conference with Montenegro was postponed on Tuesday after Zagreb refused to consent to the closing of parts of the negotiating process. Croatia is currently holding up the closure of Chapter 14 on transport policy and has raised objections to chapters linked to foreign and security policy, the judiciary and fundamental rights, and justice, freedom and security.

Zagreb’s demands span unresolved wartime and bilateral issues: compensation for former inmates of wartime camps, locating 14 people still listed as missing from the war in Croatia, prosecution of war crimes, and outstanding property claims by Croatian families in Montenegro.

Other specific Croatian requests include agreement on the maritime border, the return of the school ship Jadran, preservation of the memorial plaque at the former Morinj camp, and renaming a swimming pool in Kotor that currently bears the name of Zoran Gopčević.

Talks between Podgorica and Zagreb continue under the mediation and support of the European Commission. A new bilateral meeting is scheduled to take place in Zagreb in early October; if progress is made, an intergovernmental conference could be held on October 12 or 13.

Montenegro has provisionally closed 18 of the 33 negotiating chapters and remains the most advanced candidate in the current enlargement process. Podgorica wants to complete the remaining chapters by the end of 2026 with the aim of EU membership in 2028, but the unresolved bilateral issues with Croatia now represent a key risk to that timetable.

Photo: press material from the event