The parliamentary assembly of the Council of Europe "appreciates the steps forward accomplished in Montenegro in many fields", and welcomes "the political will of its authorities to continue the process of reformation". However, if the Balkan country wants to become the 47th member of the COE, it is now necessary "for this commitment to change into concrete acts". The parliamentary assembly of the COE, meeting in Strasbourg, expressed its positive opinion about the report drawn up by Monegasque MEP Jean-Charles Garretto on the request of admission by Podgorica. Montenegro, which gained independence from Serbia on 3 June 2006, "should adopt a new constitution within one year at the most. The new constitution should include the seven fundamental principles which have already been agreed upon by the country leaders, including the absolute prohibition of death penalty, the independence of the judiciary system, and measures to defend the rights of minorities". Therefore, the Assembly established a few dates within which Montenegro would have to ratify the conventions of the Council of Europe. Fiorenzo Stolfi, foreign minister of San Marino and current president of the COE, said that the opinion of the parliamentary assembly of the COE "would be examined by the Committee of ministers in the next few weeks, considering the objective of Montenegro: admission into our organization on the occasion of the ministerial session on 11 May".
