Montenegro invited to join Nato

The invitation to Montenegro is Nato's first expansion into eastern Europe since Albania and Croatia joined in 2009

Nato has invited Montenegro to join the US-led military alliance, in its first expansion for six years.

The decision, described by Nato head Jens Stoltenberg as "historic", comes 16 years after the alliance bombed Montenegro during the Kosovo war, when it was still part of Yugoslavia.

Russia has repeatedly warned against the move, describing it as a threat to stability in the western Balkans.

Accession talks are expected to take about a year to complete.

The invitation to Montenegro is Nato's first expansion into eastern Europe since Albania and Croatia joined in 2009. The mountainous Adriatic state of 650,000 people has a small military with about 2,000 active members.

But Nato diplomats say it sends a message to Russia that it cannot veto the alliance's expansion.

However, a Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman said last week that Montenegro's accession would send a "powerful confrontational message".