After years of rampant corruption and illicit activities, Montenegro finally boasts a Government dedicated to serving its citizens instead of exploiting them, stated Deputy Prime Minister Aleksa Bečić and Minister of the Interior Danilo Šaranović.

What we needed was simply the determination to act. A series of strategic initiatives led by law enforcement have resulted in the apprehension and detention of individuals suspected of connections to organized crime and state embezzlement. In Montenegro, negotiations with criminals are a thing of the past—we are now prosecuting them without exception, they affirmed.

They noted that all nationally identified priorities in the battle against crime are being effectively executed. The recent operation conducted by the Special Police Unit, in collaboration with the Special State Prosecutor’s Office, exemplifies the government’s commitment to completely eradicating cigarette smuggling. Similarly, another operation by the Police Administration’s Sector for Combating Crime, in cooperation with the Basic State Prosecutor’s Office in Kotor, sends a definitive message that tax evasion and government theft will no longer be tolerated.

The ongoing dismantling of smuggling networks and remarkable achievements in combating economic crime have resulted in increased adversarial actions against the security sector; however, they also demonstrate that the establishment of full legal governance is within reach.

They emphasized that reinforcing the integrity of the security sector—by liberating institutions from criminal and other unlawful influences—is precisely why organized crime is so vigorously attempting to undermine the strong collaboration among institutions that uphold the rule of law and assert state authority over the mafia.

This week, I instructed the Minister of the Interior, the Director of the Police Administration, and all relevant units to persist in purging the security sector of those individuals connected to organized crime and other serious unlawful conduct, Deputy Prime Minister Bečić remarked.

If the state wishes to gain the respect of its citizens, it must first undertake a thorough cleansing, Bečić concluded.