Nečas and Fico appeal for closer cooperation

The Czech Prime Minister Petr Nečas and the Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico appeared on a special edition of the Questions of Václav Moravec television talk show on 1 January, marking the 20th anniversary of the split of Czechoslovakia. The two heads of government agreed that the their countries should do more to work together in the areas of defence and international relations. Mr Nečas said that common defense of the two countries‘ airspace could begin functioning by 2016 or 2017. Although both he and Mr Fico admited that there is certain resistance from generals in both countries to these plans. The Slovak premier pointed out that the Czechs and Slovak could in the future share consulates and embassies in some parts of the world.

The show was broadcast from the famous Vila Tugendhat in the Moravian capital of Brno, where the break-up agreement was signed in 1992 by the then Czechoslovak Prime Minister Václav Klaus and the head of the Slovak government Vladimír Mečiar.