The EU and Montenegro have provisionally closed two more chapters in Montenegro’s accession negotiations, covering the free movement of goods and food safety rules.
The decision was taken at the third Intergovernmental Conference for Montenegro held under the Irish presidency, the Council of the EU announced on Friday.
Irish Minister of State Thomas Byrne said the conference provisionally closed two more negotiating chapters, bringing the total now provisionally closed to 23.
Montenegro has opened all 33 negotiating chapters in its EU accession talks, and 23 have now been provisionally closed with the latest decision included.
The two chapters closed cover, respectively, the free movement of goods — which in EU terms refers to removing barriers so products can be sold across the single market — and “food safety, veterinary and phytosanitary policy”, the EU’s framework for food standards and controls on animal and plant health.
What happens next in the talks
The latest provisional closures follow the previous accession conference on 12 October 2026, where chapters on economic and monetary policy, statistics, and social policy and employment were provisionally closed, the Council said.
Monitoring will continue on Montenegro’s alignment with and implementation of the EU acquis — the body of EU law — throughout the negotiations.
Agreements on individual chapters are not final until an overall deal is reached across all chapters, and the EU can return to previously closed chapters if necessary.
