Milatovic Hosts Leaders' Dinner in Tivat Ahead of Summit
Montenegrin President Jakov Milatovic hosted a dinner for regional and European leaders in Tivat, while French President Macron signed a package of agreements on Cetinje the same day.
- Milatovic hosted a formal dinner for regional and European leaders in Tivat, marking 20 years since Montenegro restored its independence.
- Vucic attended the informal dinner and said he had spoken with EU leaders and regional partners.
- On the same day, Macron signed several agreements with Montenegro on Cetinje.
- Border queues between Serbia and Montenegro cleared by around 7 p.m. after Vucic called for reciprocal measures to be lifted.
Jakov Milatovic, the President of Montenegro, hosted a formal dinner for regional and European leaders in Tivat on Wednesday, June 4, ahead of the European Union and Western Balkans summit, according to Danas and N1. The dinner marked twenty years since Montenegro restored its independence, allowing the host to pair bilateral protocol with the run-up to a major regional gathering.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic also attended the informal dinner and said on Instagram that he had spoken with EU leaders and regional partners about European integration and stronger cooperation, N1 reported. Vucic had arrived in Tivat earlier in the day and, by his own account, used the encounters for bilateral talks before the summit itself. At the same time, a parallel diplomatic event was unfolding on Cetinje with the French president, turning June 4 into a day with two separate but connected focal points of Montenegrin diplomacy.
What was signed on Cetinje?
French President Emmanuel Macron was on an official visit to Montenegro the same day. On Cetinje, in the presence of Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic, several agreements with France were signed, according to RTCG, CdM and Danas. The documents included:
- a memorandum on a strategy of awareness about EU enlargement,
- a contract for the construction of the new Clinical Center of Montenegro in Podgorica, to be built by Bouygues,
- a memorandum on a section of the Adriatic-Ionian corridor, in cooperation with Monteput.
From Cetinje, Macron said the place of the Western Balkan countries naturally belongs in the European Union.
We have opened a spectrum of cooperation that was impossible to imagine two years ago, Prime Minister Milojko Spajic said.
Has the border standoff ended?
The day was also marked by the issue of border queues between Serbia and Montenegro. At the Gostun, Jabuka and Dracenovac crossings, the lines cleared by around 7 p.m. after Vucic called for reciprocal measures to be lifted, N1 reported. That eased the tension that had earlier slowed traffic toward the Montenegrin coast amid summit preparations.
Even so, the episode is not entirely closed. Montenegro’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is still seeking an explanation for the stopping of Montenegrin citizens, showing that clearing the queues does not mean the diplomatic disagreement is over. The reciprocal border measures overlapped with a day on which the same authorities were receiving European leaders, making the contrast even sharper.
The summit itself, set for June 5, brings together around 1,000 participants across 42 delegations. Expected arrivals include European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Antonio Costa, High Representative Kaja Kallas, as well as leaders such as Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with Milatovic as host.
For the Serbian public, the dinner in Tivat and the signings on Cetinje on the same day show how much the region has become a crossroads of European diplomacy. The question is how many concrete agreements the next day will bring, when the leaders sit down at the summit table.
What do you expect from the European Union and Western Balkans summit in Tivat?
