Police in Montenegro said on Monday they had detained dozens of Turkish and Azeri nationals after a weekend of violence triggered by the stabbing of a Montenegrin man in the capital Podgorica by a group of Turks.
President Jakov Milatovic has called for calm, while Prime Minister Milojko Spajic said his government would temporarily suspend a visa-free regime for Turkish nationals.
The Montenegrin man was stabbed on Saturday night after an exchange of insults with a group of Turkish citizens, though his injuries were not life-threatening.
Dozens of local people on Sunday retaliated by vandalising vehicles with Turkish number plates and at one point forced some Turkish citizens to barricade themselves in a casino.
The police said they had detained two people suspected of being involved in the stabbing incident, a Turkish national and an Azeri, as well as an additional 45 Turkish and Azeri citizens suspected of lacking legal residence documents.
They fined seven of those detained and ordered the deportation of eight others, police said in a statement.
Out of 100,000 foreign citizens registered permanently or temporarily in Montenegro, around 13,000 are Turks, Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic said.
Officials say there has been an increase in the number of Turkish citizens opening businesses or seeking work in Montenegro, a tiny Adriatic state of around 620,000 people heavily reliant on tourism, ahead of its expected accession in the coming years to the European Union.
“With the aim of preserving economic activity and good bilateral relations, we will initiate intensive discussions with the Republic of Turkey in the coming period to find, in the spirit of good cooperation and partnership, the best model (of visa arrangements) in our mutual interest,” Spajic said on X.
On Sunday, local residents damaged vehicles with Turkish license plates and surrounded a casino, forcing several Turkish nationals to barricade themselves inside. A Turkish-run restaurant in central Podgorica was also broken into and set on fire.
Police later confirmed the arrest of two individuals, a Turkish and an Azeri citizen, suspected of involvement in the stabbing. In addition, 45 other Turkish and Azeri nationals were detained on suspicion of lacking proper residence documents. Seven were fined, eight were issued deportation orders, and two were placed under supervision pending further proceedings.
The violence prompted President Jakov Milatovic to call for calm, while Prime Minister Milojko Spajic announced that Montenegro would temporarily suspend its visa-free regime for Turkish citizens.
The measure, he said, would be adopted under an urgent procedure, as his government seeks “intensive discussions” with Ankara over future visa arrangements. Currently, Turkish nationals can stay in Montenegro for up to 90 days without a visa.
The decision follows mounting pressure from the European Union for Western Balkan countries to align their visa policies with those of EU member states.
Turkish citizens require visas to enter the EU, while Montenegro still grants visa-free entry to seven countries, including Turkey, Russia, China, and Azerbaijan. Earlier, Podgorica had already introduced visa requirements for citizens of the UAE, Cuba, and Ecuador as part of its harmonization efforts.