Slovak President Ivan Gašparovič and his spouse Silvia visited the Republic of Montenegro on 13-14 September 2011.

During the official visit, Gašparovič and his counterpart Filip Vujanović opened the joint Slovak-Montenegrin business forum. According to Gašparovič, the “political relations between our countries are excellent. In my personal opinion, however, it is a shame that our economic relations lag far behind the high level of political relations. I am of the view that our companies and businesspeople would want to invest in your country as long as there are favourable conditions. And I am convinced their presence would help the modernisation and growth of your economy.”
Vujanović agreed that our economic relations were subpar and that “we must do everything so that they would be a match for political relations.” Montenegro must improve its promotion activities in Slovakia and present itself as a country attractive for business and tourism.

When meeting Montenegro’s Prime Minister Igor Lukšić, Gašparovič expressed his belief that Montenegro would comply with the criteria necessary for the EU accession negotiations in 2012.
Gašparovič also met Parliamentary Speaker Ranko Krivokapić to discuss the integration process of this Western Balkan country. “As a matter of principle, the Slovak Republic supports the Western Balkans integration in the EU and NATO,” he said, adding that the EU enlargement process could not be completed without the Western Balkans countries.

Slovak President appreciated Montenegro’s effort to improve bilateral relations and regional cooperation with its neighbours. This is what makes Montenegro a stability factor in the region of the Western Balkans, according to Gašparovič.