Montenegro's President Targets EU Membership by 2028 in Sweeping UN Address

President Jakov Milatović used Montenegro's 20th anniversary of United Nations membership to deliver a wide-ranging address to the General Assembly, setting an ambitious 2028 deadline for EU accession while staking out positions on Ukraine, Gaza, Security Council reform, climate fairness, and artificial intelligence governance.

• Montenegro sets 2028 as its target for European Union membership, calling enlargement "one of the best investments Europe can make in peace, security, and long-term stability"
• Milatović demands Security Council reform and veto restraint during mass atrocities, citing 65 active conflicts and the deadliest year for organized violence in three decades
• Montenegro backs Ukraine's sovereignty and a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine, while calling for Hamas disarmament as part of any lasting settlement
• President champions climate fairness and human-centered AI, arguing that vulnerable nations bear the heaviest costs of crises they did not create
• Balkans framed as a region of opportunity, not conflict, with Montenegro's multiethnic society held up as a model of democratic resilience

Why it matters: Montenegro is the leading Western Balkan candidate for European Union membership, and its self-imposed 2028 deadline is a test of whether the EU's enlargement commitment — first promised at the Thessaloniki Summit more than two decades ago — remains credible amid geopolitical competition from Russia and China in the region.