The Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Mirek Topolánek´s speech at the 14th Meeting of Presidents of Central European countries in Brno

It is a great honour to speak at this forum which hosts the presidents of Central European countries. Welcome to Brno, dear friends. And I am delighted that this is the very time and place that the concept of Central Europe acquires its true meaning. And so the original meeting of four heads of state in Salzburg has become a congress in which 18 presidents are taking part today. One almost feels that Central Europe is getting larger. But the truth is the fact that the importance of this proceeding is growing as well as the will to take part in it.

For the Czech Republic it is an honour to be the host of this respectable society. A society which is, in a way, unique. From the beginning the aim of the heads of state was not to create a new multilateral institution but a platform and space for discussion, for an open of views and experiences.

The unrivalled status of this forum also consists in the fact that representatives of old and new EU member states are meeting here as well as delegates of countries which are as yet still outside of the EU.

So we have an opportunity to have an open discussion about problems which have been worrying us in Europe, in Central Europe, and in the EU. We have an opportunity, based on experience, to draw the attention of non-member states to the mistakes we have made ourselves. It is useful to have a talk about what situations and opinions are held by those who want to become members of the Union for they stand in front of its gates. I have a feeling that too many debates about European cooperation and further expansion have been lead in the wrong way. Lets listen to the opinions of countries whose views and opinions are not burdened and blinded by conventions, by the everyday routine of union politics. As we have brought a new wind to the EU, new views, different experiences from the last decades and, as is my deep conviction, also a new level of quality, they will also without a doubt enrich our discussion.

For the Czech Republic this meeting represents an opportunity to contribute to the European-wide debate, to prove that we are ready to bear our part of the responsibility for the fate of the continent and to help the others as they had helped us before.

The themes which are crucial for the foreign policy of the Czech Republic and about which I want to talk today are part of this responsibility. The defence of the continent against missiles carrying weapons of mass destruction and the preparation of the Czech presidency of the EU.

Regarding the anti-missile defence, we are now holding very broad and responsible society-wide dicussions at home, as well as a professional discussion in NATO, about all the geopolitical, security, economic, foreign and domestic political, legal, military and national health aspects of this step.

I want to emphasize that we would not start this debate if at the beginning it was not already clear that the defence of Europe against the missiles of so-called rogue states is a necessary step which will significantly enhance not only our security but also that of our European allies and neighbours. Besides, Russia does the same.

In light of recent peace initiatives on one side and new threats of terrorism on the other, it seems reasonable to me that, rather than mutually threaten each other with large arsenals of nuclear warheads, it would be better to install a defence against them. It seems more reasonable to me to replace the SS 20 missiles directed at Western Europe with a collective defense system against both random and organised terrorist attacks.

But even more important, especially for us, is the symbolic level of this decision. On the 30th of June 1991 the last Soviet occupant left the Czechoslovak territory. Only then, after the freedom in November 1989, did we gain real independence. On the 12th March 1999 we joined NATO obtaining a guarantee of safety of a collective character. The date of ratification of the contract with the USA for placing the exquisite anti-missile defence component, this voluntary, free decision will complete the process of regaining freedom and the responsibility that it entails.

The will to be involved in common defence is an expression of the maturity of the Czech Republic which as a country earlier passively accepted the guarantee of security from the others becomes a state which actively takes part in the safeguarding of the others. A state which fulfills its commitments to its allies. A state which knows about its co-responsibility. A state which perceives new global risks and is ready to face them with friends and for friends.

If partaking in anti-missile defence helps to fulfill one of the two basic goals of the original Coal and Steel Society, whose 50th anniversary we have recently celebrated, namely: safeguarding peace and security – then it is to the second goal – the way to prosperity – that we want to concentrate in our EU presidency in the first half of 2009.

We are convinced that the original intention that stood at the beginning of the European integration is still valid. That it is still necessary to continue removing all barriers which constrain full freedom of citizens, which constrain trade, which constrain business.

This is why we have chosen as the motto of our presidency: „Europe without barriers.“

We want to pull down barriers which are still dividing the continent. We want there to be no differences between old and new states regarding the four elementary freedoms of the EU. The limitations that put in place against new states have no rational economic base, but only result from irrational misgivings and prejudice.

We want the door into the Union to be open for everybody who fulfills the relevant Copenhagen Criteria (and we know how difficult they are). These are mostly countries of the Western Balkans, Eastern Europe and Turkey.

From now on, we want that the Euroean Union develops its neighbourhood politics so that within its framework, non-member states could gain not only access to the common market but also contribute to removing other barriers, especially cultural and psychological ones.

We want the liberalisation of the internal EU market to continue, and that the useless bureaucracy, regulations and high taxes that are barriers in business be restricted. We need to inhance innovation and the ability of European companies to compete, so that we can compete in a global contest.

We want to guard against the creation of new barriers and spheres of influence in the area of energy security. It is in the interest of all European countries not to allow energy politics to become a tool for promoting the interests of powerful foreign politicians.

We want to develop regional cooperation. The enlargement of the Schengen space within the original period will be a successful result reached under the watch of the Visegrad Four and in cooperation with other countries.

We want to pull down barriers in relation to third countries within the framework of the WTO. Above all this is concerned with the reform of common agricultural politics which burdens the EU budget and prevents third world countries from gaining access to the union market.

To put it briefly, in the European community, we want to tear down not only political and economic barriers, but cultural and psychological ones as well.

I am conscious of the fact that not everything I have said here will be accepted positively by everybody and without protest. But this is the very reason that we are here, so that we can discuss openly, to try to identify the causes of possible conflicts and then try to eliminate them.

We urgently need a new dynamic in Europe, we need new impulses of development. Without a frank debate, without the bravery to change established approaches, we will never rise any higher. As Winston Churchill concisely put it, „Kites rise highest against the wind – not with it.“ From Central Europe, lets create this European kite, to insure security and work for future prosperity! Thank you for your attention and I wish for a good wind to guide your discussion.