Podgorica, (MINA) – Montenegro is practically ready to join the European Union (EU), German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said after the two-day European leaders summit in Brussels.

Merz’s remarks were shared on the X social network by Montenegro’s Ambassador to the EU, Petar Markovic.

Merz said that the situation in the Western Balkans is different compared to Ukraine.

“We have been negotiating with these countries for almost 20 years and at least one of them, Montenegro, is practically ready to join”, Merz said.

He added that Montenegro has largerly completed the negotiating clusters, and that it could soon enter the final stage.

Merz stated that the question is whether the countries of the Western Balkans should join all at once or one by one.

“There are good for admitting them all at once. But there are also good reasons to admit them one by one. We will discuss this at the next meeting of the European Council”, Mert said.

As he added, the proposals are on the table and “there are a lot of colleagues who are relieved to have moved beyond the frustration experienced last year at the Western Balkans Summit here in Brussels”.