Cooperation within the Visegrad Group

The Visegrad Cooperation is a regional organization of the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. The primary objective of the 20-years-old cooperation is the joint representation of the economic, diplomatic and political interests of the involved Central European countries and the cooperation of their measures. Based on the tradition of important relations between the members in several fields of diplomacy, the cooperation was extended with a cultural dimension.

The major cultural body of the Visegard Cooperation is the International Visegrad Fund, founded by the tour members in 2000 with the objective to strengthen cooperation in the fields of culture, science, education, research and youth policy. Several experts say that the Fund is the most successful joint action of the Visegrad states- this success is illustrated by the fact that in 2012 the Fund works with a budget ofEUR 7 million. This amount is provided by the members. The International Visegrad Fund supports not only cultural projects but international artists' camps as well. Its grant system support student exchange between the states of the VisegradCooperation; moreover, students from Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Russia, Serbia, Ukraine and Kosovo may apply to the Fund for grant for their studies pursued in Visegrad countries. (Students from Visegrad countries pursuing their studies at the universities of these countries may also apply for grant.)