Poland hopes for 'orderly political dialogue' with France
PR dla Zagranicy
Victoria Bieniek
23.06.2017 14:37
Poland hopes for “orderly political dialogue” between France and Central Europe, a Polish official has said after the V4 met the French President, who earlier slammed the EU's eastern members.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydło and other V4 leaders speak with French President Emmanuel Macron. Photo: PAP/Bartłomiej Zborowski.
In an interview for a number of Europe's major papers, French President Emmanuel Macron said that newer EU member states had betrayed the bloc by failing to follow its principles while accepting funds.
During an EU summit in Brussels, the leaders of Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, which make up the Visegrad Group, sat down with Macron for what Poland's Deputy Foreign Minister Konrad Szymański called “essential” talks.
Migration policy, the future of the single market, climate and defense were all discussed in the meeting Szymański said, adding that the leaders agreed that there were discrepancies which called for “more intense dialogue”.
Szymański said the meeting was, in a way, a success.
“It was a good initiative to show President Macron very clearly and very precisely the well-motivated interests of Central Europe, and Poland, connected to European integration,” Szymański said.
Szymański said that explanations of Macron's recent comments in international media, which Poland seeks, were not delivered because the meeting served “to discuss Europe's most important issues”.
Szymański also denied that Poland wanted to call off the meeting between Macron and the V4.
Czech media earlier reported that Poland did not want to talks to go ahead after the country took offense to Macron's comments. (vb)
Source: PAP, IAR