Montenegro independence referendum succeeds - official

PODGORICA, Serbia and Montenegro, May 22 (Reuters) More than 55 percent of Montenegrins voted for independence yesterday, achieving the majority set by the European Union for recognition of their referendum result, an official preliminary count showed.

The referendum commission president, Frantisek Lipka, told a news conference on Monday that 55.4 percent of votes cast were in favour of ending the union with Serbia. Turnout was 86.3 per cent, he said.

REUTERS CH PM1404