The meeting of the V4 Senior Body comprising the four countries’ deputy defence ministers and defence state secretaries was held on 4-5 November in Prague under the auspices of the Czech Republic which currently holds the rotating presidency of the Visegrád Group.

The most important goal of the meeting was to commence the implementation of the decisions adopted at the September meeting of V4 defence ministers. The Hungarian delegation was led by Defence State Secretary István Szabó; the Czech party was represented by Deputy Minister for Defence Policy and Strategy Radomir Jahoda; on behalf of Poland the meeting was attended by State Secretary for International Relations Pawel Wozny, while Slovakia was represented by Defence State Secretary Dr Róbert Ondrejcsák.

In preparation for the first item on the agenda of the meeting, on 4 November in Prague a workshop was held whose mission it was to evaluate the V4’s defence cooperation. In light of this, attendees reviewed the results achieved so far, determined tasks for the future, and agreed to review the document Long-Term Vision constituting the basis of the four countries’ defence cooperation which is among the priorities of the Czech presidency. The attendees of the meeting also decided on the intensification of cooperation with third countries (V4+), with special regard to cooperation with the United Kingdom, Germany and France.

The parties reviewed topics which are likely to feature on the agenda of NATO’s meeting of heads of state and government due to be held in December in London, with special regard to the issue of burden sharing, and discussed potential contribution options in connection with NATO’s latest initiatives. Finally, they exchanged their views on the opportunities inherent in the European Defence Industrial Development Programme.

(MTI)