On Friday, at a conference organized by the Ministry of Public Administration and Justice and the Public Policy Research Institute as part of the Hungarian presidency of the Central European Initiative (CEI) – entitled ‘Crisis Management and Reform Policy in Central and Eastern Europe’ – Deputy Prime Minister Tibor Navracsics said that Brussels must see that the response to challenges faced by the region is of crucial importance to the whole European community.

Mr. Navracsics added that EU leaders need to recognize the responsibility inherent in their role in the development of recent events in the region, in order to ensure that economic, political and cultural system changes can reach fruition as a historic success.

The Deputy Prime Minister underlined that the Central and South-eastern European region enriches and strengthens the entire continent in economic, cultural and political terms. ‘Because we have lived through them, we know what the consequences will be if the region is isolated and weakened: it will fall victim to totalitarian ideologies, ethnic hatred and crime; the EU needs to know what a threat this would pose for our democracy,’ he added.

Mr. Navracsics went on to say that the Central and Eastern European region is more than a geographical entity: it has something to say to those who are willing to find out more about the countries of the region than can be gained from photo galleries with eye-catching captions which – when viewed in distant capitals – convey the image of a ‘problem area’. ‘We are holding this event because the Government of Hungary and Hungarians are among those who want to participate in a deeper understanding of the politics and societies of Central and South-eastern Europe,’ said the Minister of Public Administration and Justice.

(Ministry of Public Administration and Justice)