Russia tried to interfere in the elections in Montenegro to prevent its entry into NATO. As reported by RIA Novosti, said at a conference in Washington, acting assistant Secretary of the USA John Heffern.
According to him, Moscow has used “all available resources to subvert elections in Montenegro”. “I believe the explicit aim of this campaign was to change the motion of Montenegro’s accession to NATO,” he said.
Also the representative of the Ministry said that Russia was planning a coup in Montenegro, and this was informed NATO partners.
June 1, the Montenegrin authorities have announced a ban of entry 149 citizens of Russia and Ukraine. In particular, in the list of undesirable persons got Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, Duma Deputy Chairman Sergei Zheleznyak and head of the TV channel “Tsargrad” Konstantin Malofeyev.
The day before the head of the government of Montenegro, Dusko Markovic, former Prime Minister and leader of the Democratic party of socialists Milo Djukanovic, Parliament speaker Ivan Brajović, as well as a number of other Montenegrin politicians fell to the Russian sanctions list. The restrictive measures introduced in the total of in relation to 70 people, 46 of them — deputies of the Montenegrin Parliament.
Monday, June 5, Montenegro has officially completed the process of accession to NATO. The country became the 29th member of the organization. Moscow has stated that it reserves the right to make a decision on the protection of national security in connection with accession of the Republic to the unit.