Accession of Montenegro to NATO

The accession of Montenegro to NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is in the negotiations stage as of 2010. In December 2009, Montenegro was granted a Membership Action Plan, the final step in an application for membership in the organization. A formal invitation was issued by the alliance on 2 December 2015, with accession negotiations concluded with the signature of an accession protocol in May 2016.

The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro applied to NATO's Partnership for Peace (PfP) program in June 2003.Montenegro declared independence on 3 June 2006 and soon after opened a Permanent Mission to NATO in Brussels. The new country subsequently joined PfP at the 2006 Riga summit. In November 2007, Montenegro signed a transit agreement with NATO, allowing the alliance's troops to move across the country. Montenegro then signed an agreement with the United States, in which Montenegro would destroy its outdated weaponry as a precondition for NATO membership. In late 2007, Montenegro's Defense Minister Boro Vučinić said that Montenegro would intensify its accession to the alliance after the 2008 Bucharest summit. Montenegro adopted an Individual Partnership Action Plan in June 2008 and was invited to join the Adriatic Charter of NATO aspirants on 25 September 2008.

Montenegro has begun to contribute its national armed forces to NATO foreign military operations. The country plans to deploy 40 soldiers, a three-member military medical team, and two officers under German command to Afghanistan in 2010. Montenegrin peacekeepers will also be deployed to Liberia and Somalia.

Montenegro has received support for its membership bid from several NATO countries, including Romania, Turkey, Germany and the United States.

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