V4 will continue to cooperate despite differences

The Visegrad Group, comprising Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland will continue to cooperate despite existing differences on key issues, the representatives of the V4 states said in a joint statement following their informal meeting in Bratislava on Tuesday. The statement says that despite differences of opinion the V4 have always managed to reach consensus at the European level on aid to Ukraine and sanctions against Russia. Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said Czechia’s stand on V4 cooperation was “sober and pragmatic”.

The joint press conference after the V4 meeting was marred by a dispute between the Slovak Foreign Minister Rastislav Kačer and his Hungarian counterpart Péter Szijjártó over the fact that while in Bratislava Szijjártó had met privately with the head of the opposition Social Democrats (Smer-SD), Slovak ex-premier Robert Fico. Káčer said the meeting undermined efforts to foster good neighbourly relations between Slovakia and Hungary, which have been complicated by disagreements over the status of the large Hungarian minority in Slovakia. Fico said after the meeting with the Hungarian foreign minister that if his party is in the next Slovak government, it will stop arms deliveries to Ukraine.