MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday called "unscrupulous" the statements by Montenegrin authorities on alleged Russian interference in internal affairs of the country.
"The fact that they [Montenegrin authorities] decided to justify their accession to NATO by some machinations on the part of Moscow, including interfering in their elections, sending some spies, scouts, recruiting relevant politicians — this is all unscrupulous," Lavrov addressing the audience at the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University.
According to the minister, "the Russophobic campaign, which has been unleashed against the background of the drive to join NATO, shows that Montenegro does not care about any pan-European principles, but wants to sell its anti-Russian statements as expensive as possible."
On April 25, US President Donald Trump signed the protocol on Montenegro’s accession to NATO, which was the final step in ratifying the document.
Russia has repeatedly expressed concerns over the further expansion of NATO into the east. Last month, the Russian Foreign Ministry criticized the political course of Montenegro that sees them joining the alliance without holding a nationwide referendum.
