Montenegrin government

Faik Nika, the president of the Albanian National Council, said on Friday that the Albanian government will give financial support for the first time to assist the running of his organisation and its office in the municipality of Plav.

Nika told Montenegrin media the Albanian government has recently made three very important decisions for the Albanian community in Montenegro.

The Venice Commission, a Council of Europe advisory body made up of independent constitutional law experts, said on Monday that the draft religious freedom law was a step forward, but urged the Montenegrin government to organise consultations with the public, including representatives of religious communities, amid tensions with the Serbian Orthodox Church.

Media in Serbia have accused the government of Montenegro of planning to "rob" the Serbian Orthodox Church, SOC, of its assets, while Serbian officials warn that a proposed law on Church property will worsen diplomatic relations.

Saturday's Church council comes after the Montenegrin government adopted a draft law which included a register of all religious objects and sites that were formerly owned by the independent kingdom of Montenegro before it became part of the Serb-dominated Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in 1918.

The Montenegrin government denies planning to strip the Serbian Orthodox Church of its property.

The Montenegrin government and the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the Adriatic state might look like they are in a permanent state of conflict, but in fact they thrive on the tension, say analysts.

Rising Star
Bosko Obradovic. Photo: BIRN

One of the rising stars of the '1 of 5 million' protests, which have been going on for months in Serbia, is Bosko Obradovic, the leader of the right-wing Dveri party. Deeply conservative, claims to espouses traditional Serbian values and supports closer ties with Russia.

The Montenegrin government's decision on "economic citizenship" came into force on Tuesday, Montenegro-based website CdM is reporting.

An investor can get Montenegrin citizenship in several ways, including by making an EUR 100,000 payment to the account set up to finance "less developed local community unit."

Officials and politicians in Serbia on Sunday condemned Podgorica's decision to ban ceremonies marking the 100th anniversary of the unification of Serbia and Montenegro.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said he doesn't understand the decision, which he said prohibits people in Montenegro from "thinking differently and having a different view of the past".

Both Croatia and Montenegro have said they are discussing the possibility of halting arms exports to Saudi Arabia in the wake of the death of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but neither has made a decision yet.