V4 presidents meet for talks in Hungary

The presidents of the Visegrád Group (V4) — the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary —  gather on Wednesday in Esztergom, Hungary, to address current international and regional challenges. Czech President Petr Pavel urged leaders to openly discuss aspects of foreign and security policy where their countries have differing views, the Czech News Agency reported. He stressed that the V4 shares more common positions than disagreements.

The V4 has previously differed on military aid to Ukraine, with Bratislava and Budapest criticizing arms deliveries to Kyiv. In practice, however, the presidents largely avoided contentious topics, with the agenda designed to focus on areas where at least basic agreement was expected.

The presidents emphasized industry, energy, and infrastructure as key areas offering the greatest potential for cooperation. Artificial intelligence was also a major theme, with leaders calling it a crucial technology for modernising production and public services. They likewise confirmed continued support for the International Visegrád Fund, which presented its annual project report during the meeting.