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Slovak president hopes Bratislava Summit ends negativity, starts restoring trust in EU

Xinhua, September 16, 2016 Adjust font size:

European leaders should focus on what binds European Union member states together and beware of solutions that stir up negative emotions among people, Slovak President Andrej Kiska said regarding the informal EU summit taking place here Friday.

"I hope that the EU summit in Bratislava will start restoring trust. Our common Europe is worth it," said Kiska.

The Slovak president said EU leaders should clearly determine the main measures to be developed in areas of joint interest "such as security, protection and the supervision of Schengen area borders" and a precise timetable for implementing them.

Kiska pointed to a "peculiar mood" of pessimism and criticism of the EU.

"We've forgotten to utter a nice word about the Union, while Brussels has become an offensive word. Despite all of this, the reality and outcomes of European cooperation are far better than this kind of atmosphere," Kiska said.

The Slovak capital is hosting the leaders of all EU member states, excluding Britain, for the first time ever. A total of 343 delegates, 1,350 journalists, including 1,100 from abroad, have registered for the summit. Endit