The prime minister of Montenegro, Milo Djukanovic has claimed victory in a referendum to dissolve his tiny republic's union with Serbia. Official results have confirmed that a majority of Montenegrins voted for independence.
Election officials say the pro-independence camp won Sunday's referendum by slightly more than the 55 percent threshold for the outcome to be validated.
Montenegro Prime Minister Djukanovic told cheering supporters that the independence of his tiny Adriatic republic had been renewed.
But there are growing tensions with the anti-independence opposition which initially refused to concede defeat. Giovanni Di Stasi, who heads a joint Council of Europe and European Union mission observing the referendum, urged all parties through an interpreter to respect the outcome.
"It's clear that after the poll, everyone must accept the result," said Di Stasi.
The move follows a decade-long government campaign to restore the independence Montenegro, last enjoyed in 1918, and seals the break up of what remains of Yugoslavia.
