PODGORICA, Oct. 4 -- Montenegro's public finances are sustainable thanks to the government's fiscal changes, an official told Xinhua in an interview, adding that the country will continue to build its first highway.

Vatroslav Belan, Adviser to the Deputy Prime Minister on economic policy and the financial system, sounded confident and upbeat when asked about the government's debt level.

The Balkan country is building the first phase -- 41 km in length at a cost of 809 million euros (about 937 million U.S. dollars) -- of a 180-km highway. It is the country's biggest infrastructure project, designed to link the southern port of Bar to its northern, landlocked neighbor Serbia.

A Chinese bank has loaned Montenegro 85 percent of the cost with a 2-percent interest rate, 6-year grace period and 20-year repayment schedule. Despite the generous concessional loan, there are concerns - particularly in Europe - over whether the funds will strain the finances of Montenegro, a country of roughly 620,000 citizens and five percent the land size of the United Kingdom.

"In the IMF's reports on Montenegro, you can find that our economy is currently performing well and that the financial sector is improving," Belan said, referring to the International Monetary Fund.

"In 2017, our economy achieved strong growth, despite the fact that the authorities carried out a mid-term fiscal adjustment strategy. Measures taken in the context of the fiscal adjustment strategy have stabilized macroeconomic prospects," he said.

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