According to him, the main task of the CIA stationed in the Croatian town was to protect the former and current President of Montenegro, Milo Djukanovi, should the then President of the FRY, Slobodan Miloevi, attack him.

In an interview for Zagreb’s Vecernji List premium service and Podgorica’s Vijesti reports, Montgomery said it was difficult to raise money to finance Djukanovic’s government, so he said they had started to allow tobacco smugglers to operate from Montenegro.

When asked what he thought of Djukanovic’s role in the history of the break-up of Yugoslavia, Montgomery said that “Djukanovic is the most capable and agile politician in the region”.

EPA-EFE / SERGEI ZHUKOV / PRESIDENTIAL PRESS

He also said that everyone knew what was going on, but that they allowed it because it brought in the money Djukanovic needed against Milosevic.

“But when the wars ended and Milosevic fell, something like the ‘Casablanca’ scene happened. The Italians said, well, that’s where the smuggling is happening. We have to investigate there. And so they launched a big investigation that included Djukanovic. He sees the Italians going after him, the British starting to take organized crime more seriously, etc. And then he turns again. , this time to the Russians. He sends his closest advisor to the ambassador to Russia with the intention of attracting the Russians to come and invest in Montenegro. And they do. But then he sees another opportunity, s’ move away from Russia and join NATO, “said the former US ambassador. A journalist from the” Veernji List “then said:” The Russians are trying to carry out a coup at this time, which is serious.

“Yes, he survived that too. He’s constantly making huge strides in all directions, and that’s amazing, and that’s why I say he’s the most agile and successful politician in the world. region, ”Montgomery said.

When asked if he had played a role in bringing the history of the tobacco mafia and Montenegro to the media and some believe he helped Croatian newspaper Nacional and its former editor Ivo Pukanic, Montgomery said he was good friends with Pukanic.

“We worked very closely when I was Ambassador to Croatia. But I had no role in what you asked me. When I arrived in Belgrade, one of my first tasks was to go to Montenegro, then part of Yugoslavia, and assess different political parties. , to report to Washington what the beliefs of these political parties are, what are the chances of Djukanovic being sacked, so I met two or three times with representatives of all parties there, including the Serbian party. I do not see an acceptable alternative to Djukanovic because none of these other parties has the strength of his ruling party. The Serbian party has no commitment to Western values, in fact it opposes them because they are pro-Milosevic. So we have no choice but to stick to Djukanovic. This was not the position of the British Ambassador (Charles Crawford), who thought that because of all the contraband tobacco and all that, Djukanovic had to leave, but it was not my position, so he didn’t There was no way I was part of the effort to discredit Djukanovic, ”Montgomery said.

When asked if he had a theory about the perpetrator of Pukanic’s assassination, Montgomery replied, “Yes, I did.” When asked if it was the tobacco mafia, he replied, “Yes, absolutely. ”

Asked to reveal a name, Montgomery said he had been exposed to serious threats, which, as he said, were passed on to him by Serbian and American intelligence services.