Guest rest: Montenegro hopes to keep visa-free travel with Russia

Montenegro hopes to postpone the introduction of visas for Russians before joining the European Union or completely avoid this, the country's parliament told Izvestia. Podgorica has already closed 12 of the 33 sections of the EU accession negotiations: it expects to become the 28th member of the union in two years. But analysts are confident that the introduction of visas for Russians will hit Montenegro's economy — tourism provides 25% of GDP. Against this background, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Serbia, on the contrary, are slowing down the process of European integration. How the EU requirements affect the Balkan countries is in the Izvestia article.

When and why Montenegro will introduce visas for Russians

Montenegro would like to postpone the introduction of a visa regime with Russia until joining the EU or avoid such a scenario altogether, Deputy Speaker of the country's parliament Nicolla Kamaj told Izvestia.

— Montenegro is now stepping up its efforts to join the EU as the 28th member by 2028. The fundamental requirement of this process is to fully align our visa policy with EU standards. Prime Minister Milojko Spajic recently confirmed that the government is ready to give priority attention to these EU requirements, which makes it very likely that stricter visa rules for Russian citizens will be introduced or fully implemented in 2026. But this does not mean that we need to introduce a visa regime before joining the EU. I hope that this will not be necessary even then," the Montenegrin politician told Izvestia.

Earlier, President Yakov Milatovich stressed that Podgorica would try to postpone the issue of visas as much as possible in order to preserve the viability of its tourism sector. According to him, Montenegro is dependent on Russian travelers and investors, and therefore the president is "concerned about the influx of Russian money." Recall that Russian citizens can currently stay in Montenegro without a visa for 30 days.

Access point: Russia and India are closer to visa-free travel for tourist groups

Progress on this issue is expected at the talks between the leaders of the two countries in December.

Tourism plays a critical role for Montenegro: it provides up to a quarter of the Balkan republic's GDP. According to data for 2024, the share of Russians among visitors was about 20%— or 230 thousand people. In the first eight months of 2025 alone, more than 123 thousand Russians visited the country. In addition, another 21,000 Russian citizens permanently reside in Montenegro. By the way, the population of the whole country is about 630 thousand people. The investment factor is also important: about a quarter of all companies with foreign capital are Russian, according to local data.

However, Podgorica is being actively pressured in Brussels, pointing out that in order to join the EU it is necessary to bring its visa policy in line with the European one. In addition, the receipt of funds under the EU Growth Plan also depends on progress in European integration — Podgorica is owed about €400 million of the €6 billion pledged for the Western Balkans. Therefore, Montenegro is gradually fulfilling the requirements of the EU. For example, in October, the government abolished the visa-free regime for Armenia, Egypt, Kuwait and Uzbekistan.

When will Montenegro join the European Union

The entire political establishment of Montenegro, including those representatives who are traditionally oriented towards Russia, supports European integration, Ekaterina Entina, director of the HSE Center for Mediterranean Studies, told Izvestia. Therefore, in her opinion, discussions in parliament can, of course, be conducted, but they will not have practical significance due to more serious strategic priorities.

— The deadline for the introduction of a visa regime with Russia does not depend on the decision of Montenegro itself, but on the speed at which they will approach EU membership. If Montenegro suddenly closes all other accession issues, it will not slow down its movement towards the union due to the visa-free regime with the Russian Federation," the expert said.

Montenegro applied for EU membership in 2008 and received candidate status in 2010. Of the 33 sections of the accession negotiations, the country had closed 12 by December. Accordingly, over the next two years, Podgorica must fulfill the remaining conditions in order to join the association in 2028.

In preparation for the abolition of visa-free travel with the Russian Federation, Podgorica is working to replace the tourist flow. Today, it is not very efficient, but potentially the entire outgoing tourist flow from Russia will be closed, given that this is a country of maritime tourism, Entina summed up.

Will Serbia and BiH keep visa-free travel with the Russian Federation

The issue of introducing visas for Russians is not only in Montenegro. Its neighbors, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Serbia, are still available for visa—free entry, but these countries are also facing pressure from the European Union. Of course, Brussels uses the same prospect of joining the EU as its main lever of pressure. The rejection of European demands leads to a delay in negotiations.

Bosnia and Herzegovina applied to join the EU back in 2016, but the country was granted candidate status only in 2022. Negotiations began two years later and progress is extremely slow. The country's foreign policy is one of the problematic areas, since Bosnia and Herzegovina not only maintains a visa-free regime with the Russian Federation, but also refuses sanctions against Moscow.

The implementation of these requirements is blocked by the Republika Srpska (an entity within BiH), whose authorities are interested in maintaining close ties with Russia. This is largely why unprecedented pressure is being exerted on Banja Luka. In particular, by the verdict of the court, RS President Milorad Dodik was forced to resign his post. Nevertheless, Sinisha Karan, the candidate of the ruling Union of Independent Social Democrats, won the November elections. Against this background, Sarajevo can hardly be called an "excellent student of European integration," and BiH is unlikely to make any progress on this path in the coming years, given the position of Republika Srpska, INF program manager Milan Lazovic said in a comment to Izvestia.

No good: EU demands from Balkan countries to cancel visa-free travel for Russians

Montenegro may take this step as early as 2026, and Serbia and BiH will not yield to pressure yet, experts believe.

Serbia is also in no hurry to sever ties with the Russian Federation and introduce visas for Russians. The ambassador to our country, Momcilo Babich, previously told Izvestia about the authorities' intention to maintain a visa-free regime with Russia. In this regard, relations between Belgrade and Brussels have recently deteriorated sharply. For example, Serbian representatives did not participate in the EU–Western Balkans summit, which took place on December 18.

— For the first time in the last 13 or 14 years, neither I nor anyone else from us will go to this intergovernmental conference. No one will represent the Republic of Serbia," said President Aleksandar Vucic.

Lazovic noted that Serbia is slowly drifting in the opposite direction from the rapprochement with the EU. In addition to the growing level of euroscepticism among the population, the Serbian authorities have decided to keep their distance and take a pause in this process. As Vucic noted, this was done to avoid external pressure.