Visegrad declaration in Prague says stronger regional grouping can help stronger EU

The Visegrad four regional grouping adopted the so-called Prague declaration on February 15, the 25th anniversary of the creation of the Central European partnership. The declaration from leaders of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland, meeting in the Czech capital said that they would seek to strengthen ties between them and that a stronger Visegrad Group could contribute to a stronger Europe. The declaration also stressed the need to keep the EU membership door open to countries in the Balkans and for continued financial aid to countries further east, such as Ukraine, and warned against new dividing lines in Europe. The meeting was attended by the prime minister of Bulgaria and president of Macedonia. Worries had been expressed before the meeting, which partly focused on the ongoing immigration crisis, that a separate Visegrad strategy could undermine German efforts to bolster Turkey as a curb to further immigration into the EU.

Author: Chris Johnstone