Vice-President Mustafić held meetings with the President of the Upper House of the Parliament of Slovenia (National Council) – Mr Mitja Bervar, the Vice-President of the Lower House (National Assembly), Mr Primož Hainz, chairmen and members of the Committee on Foreign Policy and the Committee on Defence of the National Assembly of Slovenia and the Head of the Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group with the Parliament of Montenegro in the Parliament of Slovenia, Mr Uroš Prikl.

The common conclusion after meetings at the Parliament of Slovenia was that relations between the two countries were very good and friendly, which was being evident at all levels.

Vice-President Mustafić, during the meeting with the President Bervar, expressed gratitude for the support that Slovenia was providing in terms of the integration of Montenegro into the European and Euro-Atlantic structures and stressed the special importance of Slovenia, as a positive example of progress and prosperity of the countries in the region.

President Bervar, when stressing the importance of integrating the Western Balkans into the EU, emphasized the importance of Montenegro joining the NATO, noting that a great progress was made in terms of integration into Euro-Atlantic structures.

During the meeting with the Vice-PresidentHainz, Mr Mustafić briefly presented the current political situation in Montenegro and expressed his expectation that Montenegro would soon receive an invitation for full-fledged NATO membership.

- Joining NATO is not only an objective in itself, it means stability in the whole region which is also of great importance for the economic development of the region as a whole, Mr Mustafić said.

Montenegro and Slovenia have good cooperation in the economic field, although there is room for further improvement – Vice-President Mustafić said and expressed his hope that Slovenia will in the future offer Montenegro its expertise and experience gained when joining the European Union.

Vice PresidentsHainzand Mustafić expressed confidence that relations at all levels would be further strengthened, and that special contribution would further be provided by communities of emigrants as the best bridge of cooperation between the two countries.

During the joint meeting with the Committee on Foreign Policy and the Committee on Defence, led by chairmen Mr Jožef Horvat and Mr Peter Vilfan, possibilities for enhancing inter-parliamentary cooperation were discussed, especially at the level of committees and in the framework of friendship groups in both parliaments. Also, the meeting was focused on the current political and economic issues in Montenegro and Slovenia, with an emphasis on NATO integration, especially highlighting the role of parliamentary diplomacy. The meeting was also attended by Mr Uroš Prikl, the Head of the Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group with the Parliament of Montenegro in the Parliament of Slovenia, who stressed that groups should place a special focus on cooperation with emigrant associations in Montenegro and Slovenia.

During his stay in Slovenia, Vice-President Mustafić also held meetings with representatives of active associations and communities of emigrants from Montenegro. He met with Mr Šemso Đešević, the president of the "Native Association of people from Plav and Gusinje – Izvor", Mr Čedo Đukanović, president of the "Montenegrin cultural, educational and sports club – Morača", Mr Veselin Lakić, president of the "Alliance of Montenegro Associations of Slovenia", as well as Mr Velimir Bijelić from the "Montenegrin AssociationDuklja– Ljubljana“.

Satisfaction was expressed with the meetings held and with the opportunity to exchange opinions on current issues which were of particular importance for emigrants from Montenegro.

Vice-President Mustafić,after talking to the representatives of emigrants, noted that these emigrant communities were very well-organized and stressed as very important that the work on networking and further joint action of all active emigrant associations and creation of one association in the future, representing the interests of all emigrant organizations from Montenegro, which existed in Slovenia.

Representatives of emigrants used the opportunity to present their suggestions and proposals in light of the adoption of the Law and the Government's Strategy on cooperation between Montenegro and the diaspora.

During his stay in Slovenia, Vice-President Mustafić visited the Embassy of Montenegro in Ljubljana and the Honorary Consulate of Montenegro in Kranj and held meetings with the newly appointed Ambassador, H.E. Mr. Miomir Mugoša, and the Honorary Consul, Mr Voijslav Kovač.