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Visegrad Group delivers specifics at Anniversary Summit

17.02.2021

On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Visegrad Group (V4), a summit of the V4 prime ministers was held in Kraków on 17 February with Charles Michel, President of the European Council, in attendance.

Visegrad Group delivers specifics at Anniversary Summit

The summit took stock of three decades of Visegrad cooperation and defined the Group’s tasks for the future. The leaders signed a joint declaration on the V4’s anniversary and another on digital projects. They also discussed the current EU political agenda, including the fight against COVID-19, the EU’s climate and migration policies, and the situation in its neighbourhood (mainly in the countries of the Eastern Partnership).

The V4 prime ministers’ anniversary declaration acknowledges 30 years of successful cooperation within the Group. The scope of the declaration is one of the most extensive in the V4’s history, defining specific areas of cooperation, ranging from social, economic and innovation issues to sustainable development, environmental protection, energy and transport, as well as cooperation on internal and external security and the international agenda. 

The V4 prime ministers also decided on a 25% increase the budget of the International Visegrad Fund (IVF) to EUR 10 million in order to strengthen the social dimension of Visegrad cooperation, particularly youth mobility (as part of the “Generation V4” theme). The IVF budget was last increased in 2013. 

The V4 heads of government took note of the positive experience of the V4 Information Exchange Centre on COVID-19, which was launched during Poland’s V4 presidency. They declared their intention to continue to exchange information and best practices on protecting the civilian population, crisis, disaster and risk management, particularly as pertains to the COVID-19 pandemic, and coordination of the V4 countries’ crisis response capacities.

The Visegrad Group prime ministers also discussed prospects for strengthening cooperation on cross-border digital projects and took part in a streamed panel on Central Europe’s fast-growing digital creative sector. In this way, the Visegrad Group demonstrated its leadership position in advanced technologies, the digital agenda, and the gaming sector. 

At their meeting in Kraków, the V4 heads of government also signed a Joint Declaration on Mutual Cooperation in Digital Projects.

Summit participants welcomed President of the European Council Charles Michel as their guest of honour. Key topics of discussion between President Michel and the V4 prime ministers included the current EU political agenda, especially the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, relations with Eastern Partnership countries and Russia, migration, and climate policy. The V4 leaders stressed the Group’s determination to continue working together in Eastern policy. President Michel pledged to leverage the V4’s engagement in this area on the EU level. 

Deputy Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk, who is also the Government Plenipotentiary for the Polish Presidency of the Visegrad Group and the celebrations Deputy Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk, who is also the Government Plenipotentiary for the Polish Presidency of the Visegrad Group and the celebrations marking the 30th anniversary of Visegrad cooperation, also attended the anniversary summit. The MFA deputy head stressed that the Kraków meeting was not merely commemorative. “This summit was to work out specific arrangements. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki proposed concrete solutions and targets for the Visegrad Group’s future. These met with approval, which is why we have decisions and the most detailed declaration in the history of the Visegrad Group. In spite of the difficult circumstances of the pandemic, we are optimistic about the future,” concluded Deputy Minister Szynkowski vel Sęk.

The 30th anniversary of the Visegrad Group coincides with Poland’s V4 presidency, which runs from July 2020 to June 2021.

The two declarations of the Visegrad Group heads of government signed at the Kraków Summit are available online. 

MFA Press Office

Photo: Krystian Maj/ KPRM, Łucja Sucharska / MSZ

Materials

Declaration of V4 PM on the ocassion of the 30th anniversary of the Visegrad Group Kraków 17.02.2021
Declaration​_of​_V4​_PM​_on​_the​_ocassion​_of​_the​_30th​_anniversary​_of​_the​_Visegrad​_Group​_17022021​_signed.pdf 0.44MB
Joint Declaration on Mutual Cooperation in Digital Projects Kraków 17.02.2021
V4​_PM​_Joint​_Declaration​_on​_Mutual​_Cooperation​_in​_Digital​_Projects​_(EN)​_Kraków​_17022021​_signed.pdf 0.26MB

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