Minister Grlić Radman attends marking of Croatian People Day in Montenegro

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman visited Montenegro on Tuesday, 13 January 2026, where, as the envoy of the prime minister, he took part in the celebration of the Day of the Croatian People in Montenegro and held a bilateral meeting in Kotor with Ervin Ibrahimović, Montenegrin Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister.

The meeting reaffirmed the good bilateral relations between Croatia and Montenegro, as well as their shared readiness to further strengthen them. Grlić Radman emphasized that it is a strategic and national interest of Croatia to have a stable, secure and prosperous Montenegro as a good neighbour.

The minister reiterated strong support for the European Union's enlargement policy and for Montenegro's European path, noting that continued reform efforts, the strengthening of good-neighbourly relations and consistent implementation of European standards enable further progress in accession negotiations.

Particular attention was devoted to the protection of the rights of the Croatian community in Montenegro, including issues of property restitution and protection, progress achieved in bilateral relations, and the resolution of remaining open issues through dialogue, in the spirit of European values and the rule of law, with the aim of strengthening stability and the European perspective of the Western Balkans.

In this context, Grlić Radman underlined the importance of enforcing final court rulings and strengthening legal certainty as fundamental values of the European legal order and key elements of the European Union accession process.

The minister also recalled the work of the joint commissions of the two governments on the remaining open issues, including matters related to property, the school sailing ship Jadran, and compensation for former detainees of the Morinj camp, stressing the importance of continuing dialogue and constructive cooperation in resolving these issues.

During his visit to Montenegro, Grlić Radman also met with Zlatko Petković, Vinko Marović and Krsto Bošković, representatives of 51 families from Tivat whose property was confiscated. He expressed the expectation that property would be returned to the Dabović and Tripković families, as well as that property registration in the cadastre would be completed for all affected families.

"These are representatives of families whose property was confiscated, and they are now unable to register it in the cadastre of the Mrčevac cadastral municipality because there is no will to implement the decisions of several courts, primarily the Basic Court in Kotor, which ruled in their favour. That ruling was also confirmed by the Higher Court in Podgorica and the Administrative Court," Grlić Radman stated, adding that this is a matter of the rule of law, namely Chapter 23 in the EU pre-accession negotiations.

The minister also attended the ceremonial academy of the Boka Navy on the occasion of the celebration of the Day of the Croatian People in Montenegro.

This important day is a strong reminder of the centuries-long presence of the Croatian community in Montenegro and of the lasting importance of preserving Croatian identity, language, culture and tradition.

During his visit, Grlić Radman visited the Croatian House "Josip Marković", where he met with the President of the Croatian Civic Initiative, Adrijan Vuksanović, and the President of the Croatian National Council of Montenegro, Zvonimir Deković. The Croatian Government's support for the protection of the rights of the Croatian minority and for strengthening ties between the Homeland and Croats living abroad was reaffirmed.

The minister expressed sincere gratitude to the Croatian National Council of Montenegro, the Croatian Civic Initiative, and all members of the Croatian community for their dedicated work and lasting contribution to the development of a multi-ethnic, tolerant and European Montenegro, as well as to the strengthening of friendly relations between the Republic of Croatia and Montenegro.

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