Up to now the development of regional co-operation in framework of the V-4 has been unfavourably influenced by culminating rela-tions between Slovakia and Hungary and different viewpoints on the nature of the bila-teral co-operation respectively. While the Slovak side emphasised the importance of economic co-operation, the Hungarian side put forward the solution of the position of Hungarian minority in Slovakia. Whether such trend will continue in the future, this is the topic discussed with the fifty five year old native from the Romanian town of Cluj, János Martonyi (right), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary.

Mr. Martonyi, the Czech president Václav Havel and the Slovak prime minister Mikuláš Dzurinda declared several months ago, that it was inevitable to revitalise the spirit of the Visegrad co-operation. Do you support this challenge?

Hungary is an active participant practically in all regional structures, mechanisms and groups existing in the central Europe. Membership in them is many a time overlapping, although it is not a rule, and this creates a structure of regional relations based on a vision of "unchangeable geometry". The new Hungarian government presented the revitalisation of the Visegrad co-operation as one of the most pressing tasks of its foreign policy. The initiative gained a positive response from all our partners in Warsaw, Prague and after the elections also in Bratislava.

What is the official standpoint of Hungary towards the efforts to re-establish a dialogue about the regional co-operation?

Visegrad carries a strong, substantially political message. It is a symbol representing the spiritual unity of the middle European nations. It reflects our common political heritage, our sharing of history, our remarkably similar dreams and identical aspirations for the future. We are fully devoted to strengthening of these spiritual relations, we support development and implementation of the regional co-operation by adding new dimensions. Slovakia, that re-takes again its natural place in the Visegrad group, may significantly contribute to revitalisation and enrichment of the regional co-operation.

The importance with which we approach to the Visegrad group has its roots also in our conviction, that in the period of globalisation and European integration the regions are charged by additional task in the international relations.

Regions, often with transfrontier or multinational character, are more and more considered to be important building blocks of integration structures. For example, the European Union presented subsidiarity as one of its priorities of its internal development, which means, that many decision-making privileges were delegated from the central governments to the regional authorities.

Hungary has always wanted to play a very active political role in the central Europe and has proposed many solutions how to stabilise the security in this area. Is still so important for Hungary to speak about rights of the Hungarian minority as about the key element of the regional stability in the central Europe?

The Hungarian diplomacy has been quite active as far as its relations with its neighbours are concerned.

In this respect it is necessary to recall this year tripartite meeting of prime ministers of Hungary, Slovakia and Austria in Sopron, recent visits of premier Orbán in Bratislava, Zagreb, Ljublana as well as his negotiations with the Romanian counterpart in Budapest. These efforts are in line with the threefold priorities stipulated in 1990, which have governed all freely elected Hungarian governments since then: to go ahead with the country's Euro-Atlantic integration, to build a new type of co-operation with neighbouring states and to support the Hungarian nationality communities living within their borders to preserve their identity. It has been a striking accord about these priorities, which are not only tightly bound and verge together, but they are mutually complementing and strengthening each other.

Hungary follows the problems of national minorities really very carefully and their treatment considers to be the key element of stabilisation in the central and east Europe. Let us do not make a mistake: it is never the existence of a minority that causes problems, but it is a lack of minority rights or unsuitable treatment of the minority communities. We do not understand the existence of minorities as a source of problems, on the contrary, as a source of solutions. It is promising that the new Slovak government, that contains also representatives of the Hungarian community, has committed itself to a similar approach.

How does Hungary want to sustain the stability of the region and multilateral confidence among the Visegrad members, in particular after entering of Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic into the NATO?

Admission of new states to the NATO will not lower the importance of the regional relations. On the contrary, the NATO wishes to enlarge the zone of stability and democracy in Europe. It is expected from the new members that they will convey this philosophy to their neighbours and partners. It is in general interest of the NATO, and especially of its new members, to strengthen ties of the regional co-operation.

Neither the NATO, nor any other its member want to create new dividing lines in Europe. It is a must for all of us to prevent occurrence of such situation. Visegrad is one of the effective preventive tools. We do not think that the new members will forget about their regional commitments once they are in the NATO. On the contrary, they will reinforce their efforts to seek for new ways of participating and supporting their neighbours with those, with whom they share not only common values and interests, but also a very special task: our unique middle European identity.

Excellency, what should form the core of the Visegrad group co-operation? Would you be so kind and present the priorities of the Hungarian foreign policy towards Slovakia?

Visegrad offers enormous opportunities for intensive exchange on many levels. The countries, which belong or are currently returning to this group, are bound by the process of the European and the Euro-Atlantic integration. For us it is just natural to share mutually the experience gained from the integration process, to co-ordinate our steps and to formulate mutually standpoints to certain problems.

We are all informed about the wishes of Slovakia to join the NATO and the European Union. Hungary will do its utmost to help Slovakia in fulfilment of necessary conditions. This meaningful policy of Hungary reflects the understanding, that a wider stability and security zone in Europe will be more convenient for Hungary. It is a Hungarian national interest to see Slovakia making progress on its way of integration and entry into the NATO and the European Union. Fulfilment of the accession criteria is difficult and requires time and complex work. Our Slovak friends, with whom we have experience from welcomed and long-awaited qualitative improvement of mutual relations, can rely on the Hungarian support and assistance in this splendid endeavour.

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