Hungary’s yearlong Visegrád presidency comes to an end as the representatives of V4 countries of Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia met in Budapest. Hungarian Prime Minister and host of the presidency Viktor Orbán hailed the year as a great success, naming energy security as one of the most important issues discussed during this period.
The closing Visegrád summit touched on several other important issues, among them the natural gas interconnection between Hungary and Slovakia, where Prime Minister Orbán Viktor hailed the signing of the north-south transport corridor agreements as one of the presidency’s success stories. Mr. Orbán also said that Europe is in need of new tools in this new era, adding that as vital contributors of growth Central European countries have the authority and drive to voice their opinions louder.
Taking over the Visegrád presidency, Slovak PM Robert Fico pointed out the importance of European Union cohesion funds, while the Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka and Poland’s Donald Tusk also spoke during the conference. The Visegrád group is an alliance of aforementioned states with the purpose of furthering their European integration as well as developing the region’s economic and energy cooperation.
Photo: Károly Árvai