Czech and Slovak prime ministers say common state was beneficial

The birth of Czechoslovakia in 1918 as well as its break-up in 1993 benefitted the Czech and Slovak people, the prime ministers of the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Andrej Babiš and Peter Pellegrini agreed in a debate on Czech TV on Sunday.

Prime Minister Pellegrini noted that in 1918 his countrymen had gained independence after 1,000 years of oppression and that when the time came for Czechs and Slovaks to go their own ways they had done so in an exemplary manner without conflict or bloodshed. The years apart have brought us even closer together, the Slovak prime minister noted.

Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš rejected the idea that the break-up should have been sanctioned by a referendum, saying the Czechs would have voted to stay in the common state, while Slovaks would have opted to leave, which would have resulted in deadlock and created further complications.