The Montenegrin government faces criticism for accessing forest fires. Despite the worsening situation, it focuses on international cooperation and uses NATO and EU resources.
On Monday, the Montenegrin government has asked for international assistance in combating persistent forest fires through the NATO Euro -Atlantic Coordination Center for responses to disasters, the EU mechanism in civil protection and bilateral agreements. According to the report by Hina, TASR reports this.
According to the government’s statement, Montenegro has been fighting intensive forest fires in several places in recent days. Home resources are insufficient to effectively manage fires, especially in hard -to -reach areas where high temperatures, strong winds and drought, writes Hina.
Lack of resources
“The Montenegro Aerial Means for Fire Extinguishing are fully busy, but due to the scope of fires and technical restrictions, they cannot meet all the requirements,” the government said.
Montenegro has been a member of NATO since 2017, and in compliance with national procedures and international obligations, it can apply for assistance through these mechanisms if home capacity is exhausted.
Active fires are reported near Podgorice, where firefighters evacuate the inhabitants as well as in the coastal area near the town of Budva and in the northern region around the town of Bijelo Polje. The Montenegrin army intervenes in the affected areas.
The Ministry of the Interior has announced that from Tuesday in Montenegro it will also help a firefighter aircraft Canadair from Croatia and Serbia sent a helicopter Kamov.
Prime Minister’s criticism
NGOs strongly criticized Prime Minister Milojka Spajič and his government for being on holiday and ignoring the critical situation.
SPAJIČ responded on social networks and promised that the Montenegrin government would provide all the necessary assistance to the citizens affected by fires to repair the damage and restore the lost property. He also expressed his thanks to “friends from Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia, as well as partners from the European Union and NATO for their quick and selfless assistance in the spirit of regional cooperation and solidarity”.
