The Slovak government and the incoming Czech government are likely to hold a joint session soon, said Slovak Foreign Affairs Minister Juraj Blanár during a visit to Prague on Tuesday.
The formation of the new Czech government currently hinges on President Petr Pavel's requirement that he will appoint Andrej Babiš as Prime Minister only after he publicly explains how he intends to resolve a conflict of interest, which he hasn't done so far.
"After the election held in the Czech Republic, as I follow the process of how the government's manifesto is being formed, including statements by Babiš, who is likely to become Prime Minister, as well as by other ministers who support strengthening these relations, I believe that a joint session of governments will probably take place soon," said Blanár.
Blanár added that he received the Czech coalition's plan to return to holding joint sessions "with great anticipation". Likewise, the draft manifesto of the incoming Czech government also refers to strengthening cooperation within the Visegrad Four format (V4: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia).
"This shows that they are interested in renewing these contacts, and I'm very much looking forward to this cooperation," said Blanár, adding that he doesn't attribute more significance to the V4 platform than it deserves.
According to him, the V4 was created to bring together countries on issues on which they share similar views.
"The V4 is valuable because it's our historical heritage, with many achievements on its track record, and we should respect our history rather than throw everything away over minor disagreements. That's partly why I'm looking forward to cooperation with the incoming government," said the Minister.
Source: TASR
