Montenegro is a candidate country for membership of the EU. Its European perspective was reaffirmed by the Council in June 2006 after the recognition of the country's independence by EU Member States.
Based on the decision of the EU Ministerial Council of 15 September 2006, a political dialogue was established at ministerial level between the Government of Montenegro and the EU institutions. The first such dialogue took place on 22 January 2007 and further political dialogue meetings take place annually.
On 22 January 2007, the EU Council passed a Decision on the adoption of a new European Partnership with Montenegro. The priorities set forth in this document have been incorporated into the Action Plan for Implementation of Recommendations from the European Partnership adopted by the Government in May 2007. Reports on the fulfilment of recommendations are submitted on regular basis.