Fico: Slovakia Wishes Quick EU Membership for Ukraine (2)

Michalovce/Bratislava, April 11 (TASR) - Slovakia wishes quick EU membership for Ukraine, as Slovakia is not a country that would want to lay obstacles to Kiev's path to European integration, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) declared after a joint session of the Ukrainian and Slovak governments in the border town of Michalovce (Kosice region) on Thursday. According to Fico, the EU is a guarantee of peaceful development for Ukraine, and Slovakia would like to help by sharing its own experience from association proceedings and its EU membership. "The Slovak support for Ukraine and its aspirations to become an EU member is not speculative - it's a full-fledged support," noted Fico. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal voiced appreciation for the Slovak support for the EU integration efforts of Kiev. Fico voiced his wish to find a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine that would respect Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty and would be fair to Ukraine. He also extended an offer to Ukraine to help seek peaceful solutions together. "The use of Russian military force in Ukraine constitutes a flagrant violation of international law," said Fico, adding that Ukraine needs help and a show of solidarity. "We've recorded significant progress in arriving at a mutually beneficial cooperation," responded Shmyhal. Shmyhal and Fico signed a roadmap and the two governments agreed on the building of a railway connection between Kiev and Kosice. In the field of energy, the Ukrainian Prime Minister mentioned the renovation of Mukachevo-Velke Kapusany electric connection and the creation of a working group tasked with the diversification of fuel for nuclear power plants. "This will cost money, but such connections make sense," commented Fico. The third project is the modernisation of Vysne Nemecke border crossings. In this context, Fico pointed to the situation of Ukrainian lorry drivers, who've been left without any help for days. "We'll pass a resolution at a session of the government to task specific ministers to humanise the suffering of innocent drivers who've found themselves in this situation through no fault of their own," said Fico. Fico added that Slovakia guarantees transit corridors for the exports of Ukrainian agricultural products across its soil and explained to Shmyhal that until a joint solution is found, Slovakia will maintain its ban on the imports of 14 agricultural commodities from Ukraine. In the humanitarian area, Shmyhal underlined the option of joint production of civil engineering equipment and the provision of mine clearing machines by Slovakia. Fico added that, on a commercial basis, Slovakia is ready to continue cooperating also in military deliveries. Fico expects Slovak businesses to get involved in the post-war recovery of Ukraine. "We've invited representatives of business circles to a June conference in Berlin and we will also organise a Ukrainian-Slovak business forum in the autumn, where we would like to discuss investment options," claimed Shmyhal. mf/mcs