Presenting priorities of the Slovak Presidency at the 7th European Summit of Regions and Cities

Bratislava (8 July 2016) - State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic and the Slovak Government´s Plenipotentiary for the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the European Union (SK PRES) Ivan Korčok introduced the priorities of the Slovak Presidency in the first part of the 7th European Summit of the Regions and Cities.

The event has been organized by the European Committee of Regions in cooperation with the City of Bratislava and the Bratislava Self-Governing Region. Held every two years, the European Summit of Regions and Cities belongs among the prominent events connecting European authorities with stakeholders directly in the field. The summit has been attended by more than 900 delegates this year, making this the biggest event on the calendar of the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the EU i. The motto of the 7th European Summit of Regions and Cities is Invest and Connect i.

“The expertise and the knowledge from heads of municipalities and self-governing regions are precious, as the regions and cities are directly or indirectly engaged in managing and drawing 75% of the EU budget,” stated State Secretary Korčok. When presenting the priorities of the program of the Slovak Presidency, he emphasized the importance of the EU budget and the European Structural and Investment Funds to develop EU regions and cities.

On top of other tasks, the 7th European Summit of the Regions and Cities also aims at improving the dialogue with citizens and their continuous approximation to the EU. The same goes for the ambitions of the program of the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the EU based on three principles - to bring tangible results, overcome fragmentation and get closer to citizens. The cooperation with the European Committee of Regions i during the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the EU will be helpful in better EU communication with citizens.