Defense ministers of the Visegrad Group agreed at a meeting in Ostrava on Friday that cooperation must be strengthened in all areas of defense between the four countries.
The three-day meeting hosted by Czech Defense Minister Lubomír Metnar began on Thursday. Hungary was represented by Tibor Benkő, Poland by Mariusz Blaszczak and Slovakia by Peter Gajdos.
According to MTI, the ministers called for strengthening cooperation between the four countries’ armed forces, defense industry development and joint procurement. They agreed that their armed forces should be equipped with modern, advanced technology and more focus must be given to training and personnel.
“Every country, every nation, has its history, its interests, its values, which we must collectively protect, preserve and serve. This is what cooperation within the V4 is about,” Tibor Benkő told a joint press conference afterwards.
Benkő said Europe was facing new challenges, risks and threats, stressing the need for the European nations to be assured that increasing their national defense spending serves their own interests.
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