Visegrad Prime Ministers discuss the economy and energy

According to the Czech Prime Minister the Visegrad group reached agreement on all questions relating to energy. “We resolved our basic positions on the energy question, on atomic energy, as well the sovereignty of EU member states in decision-making on what sources of energy to use and in what proportion”, Jiří Rusnok said at a press conference.

A further topic was the areas of defence and security, where a project for a joint Visegrad operations group is in preparation; this is due to begin work in 2016. “The Czech Republic fully supports this initiative and we are convinced that it is both useful and appropriate for all the participating parties”, the Prime Minister added.

V4 countries planning joint representation in Vietnam

The growth in collaboration is to be aided by the planned establishment of a Visegrad House in Ho Chi Min City, working on the same principle as the existing house in Cape Town. “We have supported proposals intended to deepen collaboration of the V4 in the area of Chambers of Commerce, we are supporting the establishment of a joint house in Ho Chi Min City and an increase in the joint V4 budget”, said the Prime Minister, saying that the countries had agreed on an increase in the budget to eight million Euros.

In particular the Visegrad House serves the needs of citizens from the respective countries in various consular questions, but its use extends beyond this. Various cultural activities and trade development presentations are organised here.

At the conclusion Prime Minister Jiří Rusnok expressed his appreciation for the collaboration at the Visegrad Group level, which is part of the long-term foreign policy priorities of the Czech Republic. “For me it was both a premiere and at the same time a final performance for a caretaker Prime Minister, it was very down-to-earth and specific”, said the Prime Minister after the discussions.

The Prime Ministers of the Visegrad Group, made up of Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, have this year met twice. In Warsaw in March they held discussions with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the French President Francois Holland, in June with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, also in Poland. Hungary took over the annual presidency of the group in June from Poland.