20 years after the EU accession, Czechia and Slovakia reflect on their common journey
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A message of peace and regional cooperation shines through in the example of these two EU member states for the rest of the countries in the WB.
Czechia and Slovakia have found themselves together and apart in various forms throughout history: as part of a bigger empire, as a federation, as two separate states and now as two equal members of the European Union. However, throughout this journey, not short of difficulties and disagreements, they have managed to be on a common path where peace, dialogue and cooperation have prevailed and which has landed them in the current state of affairs: as two states inside NATO and the European Union, continuing their cooperation with their neighbours in the Visegrad region and serving with their example as a lesson to the integration path of others namely the Western Balkans region.
To reflect on this interesting story of the two countries, the Embassies of Slovakia and Czechia in Albania in cooperation with the Albanian Institute for International Studies (AIIS) organized an open discussion forum.
The event was attended by diplomats, officials of the MEFA and the parliament, professors, students and experts of civils society.
In his remarks, H.E Albin Otruba Ambassador of Slovakia to Albania took the participants on a brief journey through history highlighting key moments and junctures.
Ambassador Karel Urban of the Czech Republic focused on the importance of leadership in times of change. He described how in retrospect even though the people felt nostalgic and perhaps did not agree with the states going their separate ways, in the long term this turned out to be a good outcome.
“Our shared history with Slovakia helped us cultivate a deep respect for our Slovak partners´ unique needs and the ability to act on their feedback. These qualities have been essential in the twenty years of our EU membership. Besides being first and foremost a political priority, EU accession also requires developing a general understanding of how "Brussels" functions and that Brussels is in fact us.”- H.E Urban said.
Both ambassadors expressed their content at the present state of affairs when being in the EU abolished borders and once again allowed people-to-people interaction to be free and easy.
The discussion was lively and participants asked the ambassadors various questions about their countries’ foreign policy, the expected impact of the upcoming EU elections and their message for the European future of the WB region.
Focusing on the regional context Slovak ambassador Otruba said that “regional cooperation in the framework of the Visegrad group (Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia), which fostered the integration process of the countries of the region to the European Union has also been important. From our own experience, it is crucial to focus on positive aspects of regional cooperation in areas of common interest.”
The Czech and Slovak republics shared a past inside the Austro-Hungarian empire and then later on under communist rule before going their separate ways in 1993. Eleven years after they became members of the EU as part of the so-called Big Bang enlargement round in 2004 which saw the Union take in 10 new members. A day before the event, on May 1 the Union institutions and the countries themselves commemorated this anniversary.
This European Forum took part during the European week in Albania, a series of events that revolved around Europe Day (May 9).
