Foreign ministers of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) and Visegrad Four (V4) countries will meet in Budapest on March 2, the foreign ministry spokeswoman said on Wednesday.
The EaP consists of the post-Soviet states Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. The V4 is made up of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.
The foreign minister of Latvia Maris Riekstins and of Lithuania Vygaudas Usackas have also been invited to the meeting, said Zsuzsanna Matrai.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Balazs will hold bilateral talks with his counterparts in Riga and Vilnius on Thursday and Friday, respectively, Matrai said. In Lithuania, Balazs is expected come to an agreement on bilateral cooperation in 2011 when Hungary fulfils the EU Presidency and Lithuania will be OSCE president. In Latvia, the foreign ministers plan to focus on European Union issues, discuss experiences gained from crisis management and the social aspects of the crisis.
During both visits, Balazs will review with his negotiating partners current issues in Eastern Partnership and brief them about preparations for the Budapest meeting.
Balazs will give a speech in Trakai near Vilnius at a security policy conference.
Balazs said on Monday that the meeting of foreign ministers will be an opportunity for Hungary and its partners to send a joint message to the EU. After meeting his Polish counterpart Radoslaw Sikorski in Budapest, Balazs said both countries support Eastern Partnership in the EU’s foreign policy.
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http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2010/01/17/xxx-austria-paying-the-fiddler/