Diplomatic Mail: Letter to the President of the European Commission

Diplomatic Mail

Letter to the President of the European Commission

By: Miodrag Vlahović

Dear Madam President,

Let us clarify this right away: we do not expect this message to change anything.

We assume the letter will not even reach you. Yet, we readily accept that possibility—as well as the chance that even your closest aides may lack the interest or time to devote special attention to the lines that follow.

The reason for this is simple: we are not writing this letter (solely) for you and the EC, but for ourselves—out of a historic interest and the need of the citizens of Montenegro for our country to become an EU member.

Its purpose is, therefore, fulfilled even if it remains merely as a dated record that can be read one day—hopefully, in a future where Montenegro’s historic European agenda has been successfully concluded.

We would prefer not to even contemplate the alternative—that this joint EU-Montenegro project might not be completed. This “letter” serves precisely that purpose: to prevent such a negative scenario from coming to pass.

Thus:

First, recent events—specifically the glorification of a war criminal, the denial of the genocide he orchestrated, and the shameful state funeral held in neighboring Serbia—have demonstrated that the body over which you preside reacted with a certain hesitancy and delay to these phenomena, which we have been confronting and fighting against for over three decades.

In Montenegro—where the ruling political forces respond to war crimes and genocide with the same apologetics and historical revisionism as their ideological and political counterparts within Serbia’s ruling structures—the Chetnik duke serving as Speaker of the Parliament has committed an act that absolutely and definitively disqualifies him from leading our country’s highest representative body.

There was no reaction from you or your associates—including Commissioner Marta Kos—of the kind we expected.

There is no condemnation, no clear criticism.

Secondly, instead of clear and responsible messages being sent, we hear and read calls to ignore this blatant trampling of the values ​​and principles—both cultural and civilizational—upon which the EU is founded, and to “focus on continuing the European agenda.”

Such compromising and confusing messages also followed the scandalous and dangerous conduct and actions of Chetnik duke A. Mandić and the ruling majority parties (NSD, PES, SNP, DNP) in the Parliament—actions that amount to unconstitutional and unlawful obstruction of Parliament and represent a brutal, reckless disregard for key democratic rules and principles.

You did not comment on this, nor did the EC spokesperson—let alone Commissioner M. Kos or Ambassador J. Sattler.

Collectively—through this silence regarding the problem and the emphasis on a “business-as-usual” approach—you demonstrate that you do not care much for the values ​​and principles upon which Montenegrin society, as a multi-national, multi-cultural, and multi-ethnic community, is founded.

Such an approach is shortsighted and dangerous—both for Montenegro and for its European prospects. It is also very detrimental to the EU.

Thirdly, as some younger political analysts and commentators have pointed out, your approach reveals an illogical and counterproductive tactic regarding Montenegro’s EU agenda.

While it may have been unclear and confusing at the start of the current Montenegrin government’s term why you were accepting and promoting Serbian-Russian proxies (agents, collaborators, and pawns of the Kremlin and the Belgrade regime), your recent actions—or rather, your lack of appropriate messages and actions—have transformed that confusion and uncertainty into indignation and deep public dissatisfaction with your reasoning and approach.

The persistence in promoting proven anti-European politicians and parties as leaders of European policy in our country is truly baffling.

If, then, you are fighting against nationalists, xenophobes, isolationists, and “sovereignists” in your own countries (such as the AfD and politically aligned groups), citizens of Montenegro who believe in European values ​​must ask themselves: why do you support and promote their counterparts—their allies and admirers—in our country?

Do you truly believe that ethno-chauvinist politicians and parties—who daily promote destructive policies and social models regarding every issue vital to the functioning, unity, and civic, democratic character of Montenegrin society—are credible partners who will act constructively within the EU?

How is it possible, then, for policies and ideologies that undermine European unity and call into question the very existence of the EU to be unacceptable in your countries, yet simultaneously acceptable (as legitimate partners!) in ours?

What purpose does this profound inconsistency serve?

Fourth—and perhaps most importantly—do you believe, and if so why, that keeping a Chetnik duke at the helm of the Montenegrin Parliament is a prerequisite for maintaining focus and continuing work on the European agenda?

What consequences would the justified and inevitable removal of a proven national-chauvinist, genocide denier, warmonger, and apologist for war crimes and war criminals have for the EU?

Would—even if the aforementioned actions had not occurred (as, unfortunately, they did)—your countries tolerate an individual who grossly abuses the position of Speaker of Parliament, denies MPs the right to vote, bans journalists from entering, and prevents TV broadcasts?

Let us “help” you out: you would neither allow nor tolerate it—not in a single EU country. There is no doubt about that. Why, then, should this be possible—and go unpunished—in Montenegro?

What kind of European message is conveyed by your de facto support for a Chetnik duke and a Serbian-Russian proxy? What message are you sending to the citizens of Montenegro—that EU accession is merely an empty, mechanical, and technical process, devoid of substance, rules, and meaning?

We all know that is not, and cannot be, the case.

Dear Madam President,

Let it be reiterated, to avoid any confusion or doubt: it is a matter of historic interest and necessity for Montenegro to become an EU member in the near future.

As we understand it, this is also the interest and commitment of the EU itself.

There is no need to taint this historic process and its substance with policies, stances, decisions—and the resulting consequences—that deeply compromise the very reasons driving our country to become part of the family of European nations and states.

We therefore expect you to take into account the reality of Montenegro and the needs of Montenegrin society and the state. That is far simpler than maintaining an unnatural and illogical political arrangement with a Chetnik duke—who is, in addition to all the aforementioned, an aggressive Greater-Serbian nationalist and a denier of Montenegrin identity and statehood—serving as President of the Parliament.

In this endeavor, pro-European political parties and civil society—which will continue to uphold and promote European values ​​and goals—will certainly offer you sincere and consistent support, just as they have done thus far.

Respectfully,

MMV

Podgorica, September 30, 2026