Activities of the Visegrad Group in the context of the CFSP of the EU

Abstract

The Visegrad Group (V4) was formed with the aim to support Central European countries – Poland, Czechoslovakia (since 1993 the Czech Republic and Slovakia) and Hungary in their efforts to join NATO and the European Communities. V4 had to redefine its role and tasks after 2004 having achieved the set objectives in the first years of its existence. The new format of the Visegrad Group made provisions for a close cooperation between member states within the European Union. The strategy of combining potentials of the V4 states in negotiations on the EU level is based on reasonable assumptions, as it may lead to an increased significance of the region in the decision-making process. The article discusses the genesis and evolution of the V4 up to 2004. Next there is presented Visegrad cooperation in the field of the Common Foreign and Security Policy of the EU. The text analysis specific issues projecting the safety of Europe in recent years. The analysis of the commitment of V4 in the shaping of the EU CFSP will be based on source materials, mainly on documents produced by the authorities of the Visegrad Group such as presidency programmes, statements, declarations and annual reports.

Keywords

• visegrad group (v4), common security and defence policy (csdp), common foreign and security policy (cfsp), european neighbourhood policy (enp), migration crisis