NATO asks Montenegro to become alliance's 29th member

BRUSSELS

NATO foreign ministers on Wednesday invited Montenegro to become the 29th member of the alliance in its first expansion in six years.

"We congratulate Montenegro," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told foreign ministers at the alliance headquarters in Brussels. "This is the beginning of a very beautiful alliance."

Stoltenberg said NATO’s invitation to Montenegro was a "historic decision".

Montenegro’s parliament in September passed a resolution by 50 votes out of 79 to support the country’s accession to NATO.

The move is likely to cause more tension between NATO and Russia, which sees expansion of the alliance into Eastern Europe as a threat.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the press on Sept. 29 that any expansion of NATO was "a mistake, even a provocation".

"The decision to invite Montenegro to become a full member is not about Russia, it is about Montenegro and about NATO," Stoltenberg said.

"The decision to invite Montenegro is not directed against anyone, it is for our shared security," Stoltenberg said.

"The question of whether Montenegro is going to become member of NATO is up to Montenegro and the 28 allies to decide, no one else has the right to interfere in that decision," he added.

Accession talks take about a year to complete.

"Montenegro’s accession to NATO will be another important step in the Euro-Atlantic integration of the entire Western Balkans region," Stoltenberg said.

"And it makes clear that NATO keeps its doors open, to complete our vision of a Europe whole, free and at peace," he added.