Information
SEESAC Supports the XII Cetinje Parliamentary Forum
The meeting was chaired by Mr. Melvudin Nuhodzic, Chairman of the Montenegrin Parliamentary Committee for Security and Defense. The Forum was opened by the Speaker of the Parliament of Montenegro, Mr. Ranko Krivokapic, who asserted that strong democratic civilian control of the security sector is paramount to the maintenance of peace, and since the “Balkans have proven their ability to produce more history than they can consume,” Mr. Krivokapic said, the “work of the regional parliamentarians in this region is of particular importance for ensuring long-term peace and security”
The Minister of Defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Selmo Cikotic, pointed out that the “world today is shaped by its inter-dependence” and that “no country, regardless of its military might, can realistically guarantee security for its citizens without collaborating with others.” Therefore, by partaking in regional initiatives such as the Cetinje Forum, countries improve the integration of the region and contribute to its overall security.
Welcoming participants, Ms. Kristine Blokhus, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Montenegro, stated that the meeting was another important step in raising the awareness on parliamentary oversight of the security sector and specifically the oversight of arms exports. She underlined the opportunity for MPs to make a strong contribution.
In his speech, the Director of Montenegrin Police Administration, Mr. Veselin Veljovic, stated that the democratic oversight of security forces “prevents potential political manipulations of those forces and ensures that culture of impunity does not take hold within them.” In this way, “democratic civilian control directly improves the quality of security forces.”
The Head of the Montenegrin Agency for National Security, Mr. Vladan Jokovic, also declared that parliamentary oversight of the security sector is beneficial for bolstering of democratic institutions and that the Agency for National Security has and will continue to support its legal basis.
As a proof of successful regional collaboration in the field of defense and security, Diman Dimov, Head of SEESAC, presented the publication of the Regional Report on Arms Exports. The report contains detailed data, on arms exports, contributed by all the countries present at the Forum and it represents “the only such regional initiative in the world besides that in the EU.”
The Forum was also addressed by Mevludin Nuhodzic, the Head of the Montenegrin Committee for Defense and Security; Florian Horner, Political Attache of the EU Delegation in Montenegro; Drasko Jovanovic, Assistant to the Minister of Defense of Montenegro; Bosko Siljegovic, Military Ombudsman to the Parliament of BiH; Ante Kotromanovic, Member of the Defense Committee in Croatia’s Parliament; Meho Omerovic, Member of the Committee for Defense and Security in Serbia’s Parliament; Vilma Petkovska, Expert advisor with the Macedonian Commission for Defense and Security; Jozef Jerovsek, Head of the Committee on Defence, National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia; Zeljko Grubesic, Advisor to the Joint Commission for Defense and Security in BiH.
The Forum was concluded with the adoption of the following conclusions:
1. Strengthen and maintain a proactive role of the parliamentary bodies in the oversight of defense and security sectors;
2. Improve the legal framework based on which parliament can conduct its oversight activities;
3. Directly work and collaborate with the institutions in the defense and security sector in order to improve the quality of their services;
4. Strengthen the personnel capacity of the parliamentary bodies with the aim of improving the quality of their work;
5. Support regional collaboration in the field of security through bilateral and multilateral initiatives.