Visegrad Group in NATO. Webinar to celebrate V4’s 30th anniversary and Polish Presidency of the Group
30.04.2021
„Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia have demonstrated solidarity and reliability when it comes to fulfilling their obligations as NATO members and the contribution to our common security” underlined Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk, MFA’s Deputy Foreign MInister and Government Plenipotentiary for the Polish Presidency of the Visegrad Group.
On 29 April 2021, Poland’s Permanent Representation to NATO and the Brussels office of the Polish Institute of International Affairs organised a virtual seminar on the cooperation of the Visegrad Group’s countries within the North Atlantic Alliance. The discussion was attended by MFA’s Secretary of State Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk, co-chair of NATO’s Reflection Group A. Wess Mitchell, Permanent Representatives of the V4 countries to NATO, as well as security experts from Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary.
In his keynote speech, Minister Szynkowski vel Sęk underlined that the Visegrad Group was called into existence to support European and Euro-Atlantic integration in our region. Currently, as NATO members, we are engaged in strengthening of NATO’s Eastern flank and we contribute to Allied missions and exercises to ensure security in the whole Euro-Atlantic area.
The Minister reiterated the importance of building resilience in the face of new challenges related to hybrid and cyber attacks, particularly disinformation, as one of the possibilities of reinforcing the V4 cooperation within NATO. He stressed that the V4 countries expressed their solidarity with the Czech Republic in connection with Russia’s involvement in the explosion of the ammunition depot in Vrbětice in 2014.
The Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to NATO Tomasz Szatkowski pointed to Poland’s priorities in the context of NATO 2030 process and adapting the Alliance to new challenges, particularly in terms of deterrence and defence, transatlantic ties, relations with Russia, building resilience, emerging and disruptive technologies, and the Alliance’s open door policy. He also stressed that the report prepared by the Reflection Group, with the participation of former Minister of Foreign Affairs Anna Fotyga, serves as a good basis for a discussion on the adaptation and the future of the Alliance, particularly in the context of the upcoming NATO Summit.
Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Poland to NATO