Migal: Slovakia and Czech Republic to Urge EC Jointly to Secure Maximum Funding

Prague, 22 July (TASR-correspondent) - As part of preparations for the European Union's next programme period and the related budget, Slovakia and the Czech Republic intend to jointly urge the European Commission to allocate as much money as possible for the region, Slovak Investment and Regional Development Minister Samuel Migal (Independent) told a news conference following his talks with Czech Regional Development Minister Zuzana Mrazova on Tuesday (21 July), TASR has learnt from its Prague correspondent. Although the two countries differ in their views on the form of support for regions undergoing transformation, they want to proceed together on all other key issues, said Migal. They also announced that Slovakia and the Czech Republic will launch a new joint project, Urbanity SmartForm, in September. Migal praised the relations between the two countries, which, in his view, have significantly improved since Andrej Babis's government assumed office. He described the talks as mutually inspiring. One of the topics discussed was value for money from EU funds, given that the countries expect to receive a lower volume of funding than in the past. Therefore, every euro invested must bring higher-added value, stated the minister. "We in Slovakia will focus precisely on this issue. We'll also focus on helping the regions, particularly small municipalities with populations of up to 500, as well as those who may have been overlooked in previous programme periods by the ministry's previous management," explained the Slovak minister. The two countries also intend to act jointly in negotiations on these funds at the European level. "We're two similar nations with similar interests, and when it comes to the regions, we'd very much like — and this is also our shared position — to ensure that as much funding as possible is transferred to the territories themselves in the form of concrete, tangible projects, which, as I have already mentioned, will deliver higher-added value," said Migal. Migal stressed that he isn't saying that cycle paths or observation towers are unnecessary, but they shouldn't be prioritised in locations where basic infrastructure, such as water supply or sewage networks, are still lacking, as is the case in some places in Slovakia. The ministers also discussed the Interreg cross-border cooperation programme, the sharing of experience in the field of public investment, and strategic projects in regional policy. Both praised the resumption of talks in the Visegrad Four (V4 - Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland) format. Migal announced that a V4-format meeting will take place in the High Tatras on 28 September, and he invited the Czech minister to it. ko/df