2020-06-16 17:21 update: 2020-06-17, 13:10
Photo: PAP/Paweł Supernak
Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz and German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, after a meeting held in Warsaw on Tuesday, told a press conference they had similar positions on various European matters, including a solid EU budget and recovery plan.
"We want a strong EU with an important role in foreign policy and an ambitious budget," Czaputowicz said.
According to him, Maas shares his views on the "EU's long-term financial plans, the importance of the European Reconstruction Fund, the need for consultations and for finding a compromise on Brexit".
"All these issues will accumulate during the German presidency of the EU (due to start on July 1 - PAP)," Czaputowicz said expressing Poland's support for achieving the bloc's goals and priorities during this time. In this context, he mentioned the enlargement of the European Union, its engagement with the Western Balkan countries, relations with its eastern neighbours under the Eastern Partnership as well as the bloc's relations with Russia.
The two officials also discussed the situation in the Middle East. Czaputowicz mentioned Poland's engagement in stabilising the situation in the region under the so-called Warsaw Process, an international scheme aimed to bring peace to the region, initiated by Poland and the United States.
"We agreed to continue working together on all these matters," Czaputowicz said.
The meeting was also an opportunity to discuss bilateral relations between the two countries, he added. According to him, the meeting showed how much importance both sides attach to mutual relations, adding that Maas is the first foreign official to visit Poland after the outbreak of the pandemic.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told reporters in Warsaw that the two countries have a "solidary approach" towards the EU budget and "a key role to play in finding a compromise regarding the EU fund for post-Covid 19 recovery."
He said that he agreed with Czaputowicz to conduct close consultations on the discussed issues in the coming days and weeks. (PAP)
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