Minister of Foreign Affairs Milan Roćen received today the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of the Italian Republic, Alfredo Mantica, who is in an official visit on the occasion of the First meeting of the Committee of High Officials of the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative (AII) Member-States under the Montenegrin presidency.

Minister Roćen expressed gratitude to Italy and appreciation for the extraordinary contribution to the affirmation of this initiative through strengthening of cooperation between Member-States and support to the European perspective of the interested countries. He said that he expects this cooperation to remain equally successful during the Montenegrin presidency. He conveyed willingness of Montenegro to actively participate in the drafting of the Strategy of the AII macro-region, which is the key precondition for accessing EC funds for regional development. Also Montenegro will, in cooperation with former Italian and future Serbian Chairmen, promote a project-oriented cooperation and therefore preserve continuity within the Initiative.

Secretary of State Mantica underlined the importance AII has as the instrument for promoting regional cooperation between the EU Member-States  and the countries of the region which are undeniable part of Europe and its future, and whose strategic goal is accession to the EU. He restated the strong support to the accession process of the Western Balkan countries and said that great progress has been made in the region. He also expressed confidence that this Initiative represents successful framework for resolving the operative issues and defining specific projects in the field of rural development, tourism, culture, environment and medium and small enterprises.

In the context of Montenegro presiding over three regional initiatives, the collocutors proposed organising joint meeting of the representatives of all three initiatives at the parliamentary level. Also, they agreed for a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro to visit Rome in order to exchange experiences and knowledge of the field with the colleagues from Italy.

During the conversation they also talked about the Lautsi case against Italy before the European Court of Human Rights related to the use of crucifixes in classrooms in public schools in Italy. As the European Union does not have common policy related to this issue, Minister Roćen said that Montenegro understands the official standing of Italy concerning the problem which has broader significance in terms of culture and identity. In this light, Montenegro supports Italy in presenting the facts before the European Court of Human Rights. He underlined the fact that Montenegro is a multiethnic and multi-confessional civic state build upon the principle of secularism. Minister Roćen also reminded that Montenegro and Italy are both signatories of the European Convention on Human Rights and that Montenegro will respect the judgement of the Court whichever it may be.

Collocutors expressed their content with excellent bilateral relations between the two countries to which the successful cooperation within the regional initiatives greatly contributes.