(U) Secretary Clinton's January 20,

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TAGS: OVIP CLINTON HILLARY PREL NATO MW
SUBJECT: (U) Secretary Clinton's January 20,
2010 Meeting with Montenegrin Prime Minister
Milo Djukanovic


1. (U) Classified by: EUR A/S Nancy
McEldowney, Acting, Reason 1.4.(d)


2. (U) January 20, 2010; 3:00 p.m.;
Washington.


3. (U) Participants:

U.S.
The Secretary
A/S Philip Crowley, Public Affairs
DAS Stuart Jones, EUR
Jeff Hovenier, NSC Director for Central and
Eastern Europe
Joe Macmanus, Executive Assistant to the
Secretary
Roksana Houge, EUR/SCE (Notetaker)

Montenegro
Milo Djukanovic, Prime Minister
Igor Luksic, Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Finance
Milan Rocen, Foreign Minister
Miodrag Vlahovic, Ambassador to the U.S.
Vojin Vlahovic, Chief of Prime Minister's
Cabinet


4. (C/NF) Summary. Montenegrin Prime Minister
(PM) Milo Djukanovic delivered two messages to
the Secretary: Montenegro is moving steadily
towards membership in NATO and the European
Union (EU),and Montenegro will continue to
support efforts to achieve peace and stability
in the Balkans. Calling the U.S. a strong
partner, the PM reiterated that the U.S. can
count on Montenegro as a responsible partner
and ally in the region and in Afghanistan. He
also pledged to continue with rule of law
reform in order to improve the quality of life
for Montenegrin citizens and also meet NATO-EU
standards. The Secretary expressed support
for Montenegro's NATO-EU aspirations. She
thanked Djukanovic for Montenegro's upcoming
ISAF contributions, for establishing
diplomatic relations with Kosovo, and for his
positive role in the region, especially in
Bosnia. She urged Djukanovic to intensify
rule of law efforts and encouraged him to
establish a taskforce to fight organized crime
and corruption. End Summary

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Montenegro on the Right Path Towards NATO/EU
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5. (C/NF) Thanking the Secretary for the
strong U.S. support for Montenegro's Euro-
Atlantic aspirations, Djukanovic assured her
that Montenegro is on the right path and that
Montenegro will work hard to meet NATO-EU
standards. He thanked her personally for her
support for MAP for Montenegro at the December
2009 NATO Ministerial and expressed his strong
belief that Montenegro will be the next member
of the Alliance. Noting that only 3 1/2 years
after independence Montenegro has managed to
get MAP, he predicted Montenegro will get EU
candidate status in 2010. The Secretary
responded that there are challenges ahead such
as fighting organized crime and corruption and
creating a rule of law environment that
attracts foreign investors. This is all part
of the NATO-EU integration processes. She
assured the Prime Minister that the U.S. will
work with Montenegro to help it reach full
membership in NATO-EU.

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STATE 00008900 002 OF 003

SUBJECT: (U) Secretary Clinton's January 20,
2010 Meeting with Montenegrin Prime Minister
Milo Djukanov
Montenegro Committed to Regional
Stability/Bosnia
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6. (C/NF) Djukanovic expressed his concern
about stability in the region and offered his
views on Bosnia. He had reached out to
Bosnian Serb leader Dodik to encourage him to
be constructive on constitutional reform. He
noted that the only cure for Bosnia and the
region is integration into Euro-Atlantic
institutions. He expressed regret Bosnia was
not invited into MAP in December and said that
it is vital that the U.S. encourage the EU
partners to keep the NATO-EU doors open for
the Balkan countries.


7. (C/NF) Djukanovic also noted that despite
the outcome of the Butmir process, the effort
sent a strong signal to the region about the
U.S. interest in the Balkans. He predicted
that further outside efforts in Bosnia will
have no effect until after the October
elections, and he urged that partners like
Russia and Turkey be included to avoid any
secret deals. Achieving a minimal level of
functioning of the Bosnian central government
is crucial, he said, for Bosnia's stability
and its path to NATO and the EU. For Butmir
to work, he added, it is imperative that we
remain united and educate the Bosnian people
on the benefits of constitutional reform. The
Secretary thanked Djukanovic for reaching out
to Dodik to encourage him to reconsider his
path and stressed that the U.S. wants to work
closely with Montenegro in order to get the
support needed to move forward on
constitutional reform. Djukanovic once more
expressed his commitment to remain actively
engaged.

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Montenegro Committed to Global Peace and
Stability/ISAF
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8. (C/NF) The Secretary thanked Djukanovic for
his commitment to send Montenegrin troops to
Afghanistan with ISAF in March. Djukanovic
noted that while this was Montenegro's first
infantry platoon deployment with ISAF,
Montenegro is a regular contributor to peace
keeping operations in Cyprus and Somalia. He
also offered to consider assistance on Haiti.

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Kosovo
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9. (C/NF) The Secretary praised Montenegro's
decision to recognize Kosovo and establish
diplomatic relations on January 15 despite
vocal opposition from the large Serb minority
in Montenegro. She said that Montenegro's
steps were significant to the U.S. and
important for the region. Djukanovic said
that despite protests from Belgrade,
Montenegro took these steps in its national
interest and to promote regional stability.

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Rule of Law and Economic Reform/Assistance
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10. (C/NF) The Secretary commended the PM's
efforts in fighting corruption. She urged the
PM to establish an interagency task force to
fight organized crime and corruption and
stressed that as Montenegro prepares to
fulfill NATO-EU entry requirements, its
actions in improving transparency and the rule
of law will be monitored closely. Djukanovic
thanked the Secretary for her suggestion and

STATE 00008900 003 OF 003

SUBJECT: (U) Secretary Clinton's January 20,
2010 Meeting with Montenegrin Prime Minister
Milo Djukanov
agreed that more challenges lie ahead. He
promised that he would do everything needed to
fulfill the remaining obligations. The
reforms, he noted, will also improve
Montenegro's economic comparative advantage
and attract more investors. The Secretary
agreed and recognized the efforts of the
Montenegrin Embassy in Washington, the U.S.
Embassy in Montenegro, and U.S. - Montenegro
Business Council in working to create a level
playing field. She also announced to the PM
an increase in USG assistance to Montenegro in
2010 from USD 9 million to USD 10 million and
noted that some of this assistance will be
used for programs designed to help the
Montenegrin government create a better rule-
of-law environment.

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Visit to Montenegro
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11. (SBU) Djukanovic extended an invitation
to the Secretary to visit Montenegro during
future trips to Europe. The Secretary
responded that she was delighted to receive
the invitation and would look for an
opportunity. The Secretary and Djukanovic
announced a possible visit in a statement to
the press immediately following the meeting.
CLINTON