- Montenegro's pro-Russian opposition parties have rejected charges by the country's chief prosecutor that Russian nationalists organized an alleged October coup attempt aimed at assassinating pro-Western leader Milo Djukanovic over his efforts to join NATO.
"It is obvious that the special prosecutor has become a servant of the [ruling] Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS)," Milutin Dukanovic, leader of the opposition Democratic Front, told RFE/RL's Balkan Service on November 7.
He called the charges that two unidentified Russian citizens organized an allegedly foiled coup attempt on the eve of the country's parliamentary elections on October 16 "part of the contrived and fabricated...coup d'etat affair."
The Democratic Front is one of the leading pro-Russian opposition parties in Montenegro, all of whom have refused to participate in the parliament since the October 16 national election. The vote gave Djukanovic's ruling DPS a large majority but not enough seats to govern on its own.
The pro-Russian parties say the government's announcement of the arrests of 20 alleged coup plotters the night before the October 16 election unfairly influenced voter behavior by suggesting that opposition parties sought to overthrow the government.
Chief prosecutor Milivoje Katnic said on November 6 that the aim of the alleged coup was to assassinate the prime minister during the election to help an opposition party take over the state. He did not name the party in question.
He also said two unidentified nationalists from Russia were the organizers and sought a professional sharpshooter to carry out the assassination. He added that there was no evidence of Russian government involvement.
Moscow has said it had no official role in the alleged coup attempt. (FullText)
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