Montenegro strikes out on its own

PODGORICA, Serbia and Montenegro - Montenegro ended nearly a century of formal ties to Serbia on Monday and won back its lost sovereignty in an independence referendum closing the final chapter in the story of Yugoslavia.

The world's newest independent state has a population of just 650,000, with a rugged coast and even more rugged mountains in a territory about the size of Northern Ireland. Tourism is its planned ticket to prosperity as it strikes out on its own.

"I am convinced Montenegro could be the next country from this region to join the European Union, after Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia, which are further along the process," said Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic, the architect of the independence drive for the past 10 years.

Serbia reluctantly conceded that its little cousin on the Adriatic had opted to split, and the European Union quickly gave a seal of approval to a separation it had once tried to prevent, fearing further instability in Europe's most turbulent corner.

Announcing the first official results, Montenegro's referendum commission said 55.4 per cent of Sunday's referendum votes were in favour of independence, clearing the EU-required target of 55 per cent for recognition. Turnout was 86.3 per cent.

But Montenegrins had already drunk the champagne.

Early projections on Sunday evening were a little exaggerated but they set off a riot of celebration in the capital Podgorica, filling the streets with ecstatic independence supporters waving flags, igniting fireworks and firing automatic guns in true Balkan tradition.

"By a majority decision of the citizens of Montenegro, the independence of the country has been renewed," Djukanovic told crowds cheering the end of his long campaign to revive the independence Montenegro last enjoyed in 1918.

"We've got our state," said the tall, suave prime minister who was Yugoslavia's youngest premier in 1991. Djukanovic has primed the pump for independence with projects including a new airport terminal and a smart section of new highway to the sea.

He says Montenegro - the name means Black Mountain - will get a United Nations seat by September.

Neither Serbia nor Montenegro has divulged its plans for the day after the referendum, so there is as yet no clear idea of how the practical matter of separation will be sorted out. But Djukanovic said he had a plan ready to present to Belgrade.

Fears of unrest proved unfounded. The night was calm even in ethnic Serb areas that massively supported the union, although the pro-union camp complained that pollsters had jumped the gun with their early unofficial projections of the winning result.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who forged the union three years ago in a bid to prevent further fragmentation, welcomed the "successful" referendum, saying the EU would respect it.

"It seems that the process was orderly and we have to congratulate everybody for that," he said, adding that the exceptional turnout confirmed the referendum's legitimacy.

Independence advocates believe Montenegro has a better chance of development and EU membership on its own than in a dysfunctional union with Serbia, which has a population 7.5 million and a big hangover from its role in the Balkan wars of the 1990s.

The divorce will leave Serbia alone to deal with more pressing issues, such as talks on potential independence for its breakaway Kosovo province, and EU aspirations now in limbo due to its failure to deliver Bosnian Serb war crimes fugitive Ratko Mladic.

Analysts say the moribund union could hardly have been any looser in any case. The two republics had different laws and currencies and their joint parliament hardly ever met.

The decision closes the book on Yugoslavia, which fell apart in the early 1990s. Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia fought Serbs to be free. Only Macedonia left without a shot, and now Montenegro.

"Yesterday we witnessed the end of project Yugoslavia, which was formed ... with good intentions," said Macedonian Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski.

"I think it will have a sobering effect on Belgrade and make Serbia turn towards European integration."

There was grudging acceptance and a hint of suspicion in Serbia as media reported the victory.

Headlines read: "Breakaway!" and "It's over".

"Milo's majority questionable," said the Belgrade daily Politika. "One can conclude that the sovereigntists won, but no one can tell by how many votes," it commented.

Aleksandar Simic, adviser to Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, was quoted as saying he would "not be surprised if someone today filed criminal charges" against the pollsters.

"What they did was in the best tradition of separatist scenarios," Simic said.

- REUTERS