Controversies Surrounding Membership in NATO in Private Discourses: The Citizens’ Viewpoint

Abstract

The question of Montenegro’s membership in NATO has produced numerous controversies regarding identity. In fact, it was an extension of already present issues. At the turn of the twenty-first century, the essence of the terms “Montenegrin” and “Serbian” were already hotly debated in various spheres of social life. Whether the disagreements refer to questions of language (do Montenegrins speak Montenegrin or Serbian), religion (do they fall under the auspices of the Serbian Orthodox Church or the Montenegrin Orthodox Church), status of statehood (in favor or against an independent Montenegro), or other issues, we can say that at the root of this “cultural war” on identity lies a single question: are Montenegrins a subgroup of the Serbian people or a discrete ethnic/national group?¹ As I have mentioned, Montenegro has a dual narrative basis² that allows for the reproduction and perpetuation of a fluid identity that can be understood as either Montenegrin or Serbian. As we will see, this question of identity has burdened and deeply influenced private discourses of Montenegrin membership in NATO.