Slovak and Hungarian Premiers Sign Memorandum on Cross-border Development
Bratislava, April 28 (TASR) - Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) and his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban signed on Monday a memorandum on cross-border development between Slovakia and Hungary.
According to Fico, the official visit confirmed the above-standard friendly relations between the countries, but at the same time also the relations between them personally. The Slovak premier stated that there are currently no outstanding political issues that would disturb the countries. If needed, he said, the prime ministers are ready to sit down and address any disputes. "We're currently living in a system of the best Slovak-Hungarian relations of all times. I'd also confirm at this moment that Slovakia and the Slovaks will always be able to rely on us and we Hungarians also rely on Slovakia because our two countries have a number of common interests," noted Orban.
The Hungarian premier also reported that ongoing development projects will need to be implemented. He pointed out that initially the countries had agreed on 22 border crossings and they were able to increase these to 40. But now, according to Orban, three more new roads, three new bridges and border crossings will have to be built. They also want to renovate some of them.
"We exchanged information in the field of nuclear energy, where Slovakia is very far ahead, because today a substantial part of the electricity we consume in Slovakia is produced in nuclear power plants. I'm glad that there is cooperation between renowned Slovak companies in this field and reputable Hungarian companies in projects of this type, which are being implemented in Hungary," said Fico.
The Slovak prime minister also pointed out that as of July 1 Hungary is due to become the presiding country of the Visegrad Four (V4 - the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia). Fico asked Orban to do his best to revive this regional cooperation. "The V4 cooperation was deliberately destroyed and eliminated because the big players in the European Union didn't accept that there was regional cooperation in the European Union, which represented more than 60 million people and which ensured that these four countries were able to pursue their own interests," noted Fico, promising to support Orban in his efforts.
Fico praised the sovereign attitudes of both the Hungarian government and Orban, which they often present when defending Hungary's national interests in the European Union. "As Slovak prime minister, I'll never agree to anyone in the EU being punished for sovereign positions. I'll never agree to any procedures that would lead to the punishment of those who do exactly what they promised to their own voters, who behave sovereignly and who defend their own national interests," noted the Slovak prime minister.
In this context, Orban added that no one can limit Hungary's sovereignty in the field of migration policy. Also, he said, no one can decide on behalf of Hungary and Slovakia with whom they want or do not want to coexist.
Orban officially invited Fico to visit Hungary, to which the Slovak premier agreed.
