Slovak President Visits Hungary

Climate protection, energy issues and migration dominated the agenda - as well as the role the Visegrád Four should play in the European Union.

As the new Slovak President, Zuzana Čaputová was received by her Hungarian counterpart János Áder in the Sándor Palace in Budapest, the two politicians agreed that mankind was in the last hour to act in the matter of climate protection. The Hungarian President emphasized that one must act now "above all, so that we do not cause the next generation an insurmountable problem."

The two heads of state were also in agreement regarding the issue of protecting the external borders of Europe and what they say as an inadequate and ineligible migration quota, according to Áder.

Zuzana Čaputová said she wished to be the president of all the people in her country, including the 450,000 Slovak citizens who claim to be Hungarian. In her words, "liberal democracy, which guarantees equality for all, is also the most effective means of protecting minorities." The Slovak head of state also pointed out that cooperation among the Visegrád Four would carry more weight if in addition to protecting regional interests, the countries would also stand by values such as the rule of law, democracy and freedom. It is also important that "they should not be seen as weakening or disrupting the European Union," she said. In response to a question from the press, Zuzana Čaputová said that reports in the Hungarian media claiming she was an agent of U.S. financier George Soros were lies, Hungarian state news agency MTI said.