Accession negotiations with Montenegro were opened in June 2012. To date, 33 negotiating chapters have been opened, of which three have been provisionally closed. Montenegro continued to broadly implement the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) and meetings of the joint bodies under the agreement took place at regular intervals. Overall, the government accelerated preparations on EU accession and worked effectively, in particular on meeting the requirements stemming from the interim benchmarks of chapters 23 and 24. On 26 June 2024, the 16th meeting of the Accession Conference with Montenegro confirmed that Montenegro overall met the interim benchmarks for chapters 23 and 24 and adopted the closing benchmarks for these chapters. This opens a new phase in the
accession negotiations, with the possibility to proceed with provisionally closing further chapters. To do so, it will be essential for Montenegro to establish a track record of implementation and deliver results on the ground.