Topolánek, Merkel en Sarkozy bereiden samen Europese G20-bijeenkomst voor (en)

Met dank overgenomen van Tsjechisch voorzitterschap Europese Unie 1e helft 2009 i, gepubliceerd op woensdag 18 februari 2009.

On 22 February, Czech Prime Minister and President of the European Council M. Topolánek i will meet German Chancellor A. Merkel i and French President N. Sarkozy i in Berlin for bilateral talks as part of the preparatory meeting of the European G20 countries.

“Germany is not only the country hosting this preparatory meeting and the economically most significant neighbour of the Czech Republic but, like France, it is also one of the key economies of the European Union”, stated Mirek Topolánek on the topic of the bilateral meetings. “Moreover, France handed the EU Presidency over to the Czech Republic and close cooperation with President Nicolas Sarkozy is a prerequisite for maintaining an efficient pace of the Presidency”, added the President of the European Council stressing that against the backdrop of the financial crisis intensive contacts with both politicians are indispensable.

“I am also personally looking forward to speaking to Nicolas”, said the Czech Prime Minister. “I hope that our meeting will put an end to media speculation that we have difficulty finding common ground. There have already been several occasions on which the French President gave me a good reason to believe that his support for the Czech Presidency is more than just formal”.

At the Berlin meeting, leaders of the European members of the G20 will address issues related to the implementation of the EU Recovery Plan and to the need for the Member States to act together when tackling the international agenda. “If the European Union is to make itself heard at the global level, it must speak with one voice, i.e. adhere to the common rules and fiscal discipline”, Mirek Topolánek agreed with European Commission President José Manuel Barroso i at the meeting with representatives of the EU national Parliaments in the European Parliament.

The G20 summit, in which the Czech Republic will participate as the country holding the EU Presidency, will take place on 2 April in London.

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