In brief
The Visegrad Group presidential summit opened in Trencin on 4 November 2026. Presidents Peter Pellegrini, Petr Pavel, Karol Nawrocki and Andras Baka were joined by Ursula von der Leyen, whose attendance marked the first time an EU Commission president attended a V4 summit. Discussions focused on boosting regional cooperation and enhancing the group’s influence within the European Union.
The Visegrad Group’s presidential summit opened on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, in Trencin in western Slovakia, bringing together the presidents of Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland for the first time with the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen.
Located in the heart of Slovakia, Trencin was chosen as the venue because the city is the 2026 European Capital of Culture and has a significant symbolic heritage. The Treaty of Trencin, signed in 1335, is one of the earliest recorded agreements among Central European monarchs and inspired the founders of the modern‑day Visegrad Group.
Slovak President Peter Pellegrini hosted the meeting from his presidential office in Trencin. The Slovak President’s Office confirmed that this was the first occasion in which the European Commission President has attended a V4 presidential summit, signalling a strengthening of EU‑regional cooperation.
Other participants included Czech President Petr Pavel, Polish President Karol Nawrocki and Hungarian President András Báka. Their presence underscored the group’s shared intent to revitalize collaboration among the four countries and to strengthen their collective voice in European affairs.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, attended the session to highlight the EU’s commitment to closer ties with the Visegrad Group. Her participation also provided an opportunity to address shared priorities directly within a broader European framework, according to the TASR reporting on the summit.
Key discussion topics revolved around the deepening of regional cooperation and the ways to enhance the four countries’ position within the European Union through closer collaboration. The summit participants expressed an ambition to align their national policies to reflect shared interests and to amplify their influence in EU decision‑making processes.
According to the News Agency of the Slovak Republic (TASR), the summit’s agenda included measures aimed at fostering economic integration, cross‑border transportation links, joint security initiatives and cultural exchange programmes that resonate with the region’s shared heritage.
European Commission officials noted that the presence of von der Leyen, for the first time at a V4 presidential summit, was an “opportunity to reinforce the EU’s commitment to the Visegrad region” and to engage directly with leaders who shape policy at the national level.
The symbolic importance of Trencin was highlighted again by the Slovak President’s Office when they described the city’s role as a link to the historical treaty that precedes the Visegrad cooperation model.
Overall, the meeting set the tone for a renewed chapter of collaboration and reaffirmed the Visegrad Group’s desire to play a more pronounced role within the European Union while leveraging the support of the European Commission to realize shared priorities across the region.
