Montenegro, Serbia to join Russian Customs Union

Montenegro and Serbia are the only states in the region which Moscow has free trade agreements with, the minister said in Podgorica on Wednesday.

"This will be an additional incentive for investment because, apart from the existing market, that of the Customs Union will also be opened," Shoigu said during a meeting with Montenegrin Economy Minister Vladimir Kavarić.

During the meeting, Shoigu and Kavarić also discussed problems in the Podgorica Aluminum Combine, in which the Montenegrin government and the company of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska each own one third.

It was indicated that "the issue of all issues" is the long-term supply of electricity to the company, on which the fate of the aluminum factory depends.

According to some media reports, Shoigu arrived in Podgorica in order to request subsidies for electricity from the Montenegrin government. The state's aid in this form for the factory expires in spring 2012.