To foster the growth of tourism in Montenegro, improvements to Montenegrin airports are essential. This was the consensus between Prime Minister Milojko Spajić and Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Vice President of the UAE and its Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The Government reported that Spajić met Al Nahyan at Villa Gorica.

In the statement, Spajić expressed gratitude for “the generous assistance from our friends in the UAE, who provided a firefighting aircraft during the fire season, thus significantly bolstering Montenegrin firefighting capabilities to safeguard lives, property, and natural resources.”

Al Nahyan remarked that true friends support one another and assured Montenegro of continued backing in facing future challenges.

“We discussed leveraging advanced technologies from the UAE to tackle one of the Mediterranean’s most significant challenges – forest fires,” the statement explained.

The Government indicated a mutual willingness to initiate projects in tourism, energy, digitalization, security, and agriculture at the earliest opportunity.

“I am confident that in the near future, we will receive well-defined project proposals at both state and local levels to capitalize on this momentum of enhanced cooperation and deepen our countries’ connections. It is in our shared interest to commence tangible initiatives, and we eagerly anticipate this,” Spajić stated.

The Government reiterated that Spajić and Al Nahyan agreed on the necessity of improving Montenegrin airports for the advancement of tourism.

“Finalizing the concession process is the initial step towards this goal,” Spajić commented.

The Government also welcomed the establishment of a direct air connection during the season, emphasizing that airport development and capacity expansion will facilitate year-round connectivity and accommodate larger wide-body aircraft. The statement highlighted that operating airports 24/7 is particularly important for the Asian market.

Moreover, the statement mentioned that Al Nahyan expressed readiness to offer expert and financial assistance to EPCG in developing energy projects, ensuring that Montenegrin citizens continue to benefit from affordable electricity while promoting data centers, fintech, and AI industries, where energy affordability is crucial for competitiveness.

“Why sell raw electricity when we can export more sophisticated products and services that derive from affordable electricity prices?” Al Nahyan remarked.

The Government’s statement also noted that developing data center infrastructure would attract numerous large IT companies to Montenegro.

“To enhance the economic standard of Montenegrin citizens, we underscored the importance of constructing affordable housing, particularly through the Velje Brdo project and other social housing initiatives, aimed at greatly reducing rental costs and apartment prices for the citizens of Montenegro. The UAE is keen on exploring financing opportunities for this project on favorable terms,” the statement detailed.

During the meeting, the possibility of cooperation in agriculture was also discussed, focusing on producing and purchasing healthy, high-quality food, which is a significant potential for Montenegro.

“We also talked about enhancing security through the application of AI and video surveillance within public schools, with a strong emphasis on preventing bullying and combating drug use and distribution in schools,” the statement added.

In attendance with Spajić were Deputy Prime Ministers Aleksa Bečić, Filip Ivanović, and Ervin Ibrahimović, as well as Ministers Majda Adžović, Danilo Šaranović, and Admir Šahmanović.

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