V4 countries back Eastern Partnership at meeting in Slovakia

The foreign ministers from the Visegrad 4 countries (the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland) met on Friday in Slovakia to discuss and express support for closer cooperation between the EU and six post-Soviet countries under the Eastern Partnership project. At the upcoming Eastern Partnership summit, the V4 are set to discuss the liberalisation of visa policy. At Friday’s meeting, the foreign ministers expressed support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence, in the face of the annexation last year of Crimea by Russia. Ukraine has been participating in the Eastern Partnership, along with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia and Moldova. Friday’s meeting was also attended by High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn, Foreign Minister of Latvia Edgars Rinkevics, Foreign Minister of Romania Bogdan Aurescu and Foreign Minister of Sweden Margot Wallstrom.