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EU standing at historic crossroads: Slovak official

Xinhua, July 11, 2016 Adjust font size:

The European Union (EU) is at a turning point and needs to specify which direction it will take, Slovak parliamentary vice-chair Bela Bugar said at an EU national parliamentary committees conference here on Monday.

"We still see a high level of disinclination and apathy in politics, resignation and the growth of populism and extremism. The EU faces many historic challenges. Although it's impossible to be prepared for everything, I'm positive that Slovakia will be a responsible partner and a fair mediator in the European debate," Bugar said at the Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union (COSAC).

According to Bugar, people feel political leaders are moving away from them and speaking an incomprehensible language that is cut off from reality.

"Slovakia wants to bring new energy to Europe especially after Brexit," said Bugar.

According to Lord Timothy Boswell, chairman of the EU select committee of the British parliament's House of Lords, Britain and the EU must now cooperate more than ever, saying he regretted the recent decision of British voters to leave the bloc.

"There has been speculation about reversing this decision, but I don't see any prospects for such an approach. The response of the British people must be respected," Boswell said. A total of 48 percent of Britons voted to stay in the EU in the June 23 referendum. Endit