On Tuesday, Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) will make his first foreign trip to Slovakia, traditionally the first place where Czech prime ministers go after their appointment. He will meet Eduard Heger, Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová, and National Council President Boris Kollár.
With Heger, Fiala will discuss bilateral cooperation and regional and European issues. Topics will include the EU’s eastern border situation, the bloc’s enlargement to include the Western Balkan countries and the Green Deal for Europe.
The prime ministers will also discuss the Czech presidency of the EU Council, which will take place in the second half of next year, and the Slovak presidency of the Visegrad Group (V4), which includes Poland and Hungary.
The latter country is currently leading the V4 until July, after which Slovakia will lead the group for a year. Slovak Prime Minister Heger will be mainly interested in the priorities of the new Czech government on the domestic and European agendas, including preparations for the Czech EU presidency, Heger’s spokeswoman Ľubica Janíková mentioned.
The talks between the two prime ministers will also include cooperation at the V4 level and in the so-called Slavkov format between the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Austria. According to his spokesperson, Heger will appreciate at the meeting that the first foreign trip of the Czech Prime Minister, according to tradition, will lead to Slovakia. Bratislava sees this as proof that relations between the Czech Republic and Slovakia are high.
Shortly after the appointment of Fial’s government, Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský (Pirates) also headed to Bratislava. After a meeting with Ivan Korčok, he expressed his support for maintaining the unity of EU and NATO member states towards Russia.