Despite the positive developments, the crisis is dragging out. And in too many countries, too many people are without a job. Also in Slovakia. This is not least a problem for young people, women and socially weaker groups, who are still searching for their first real job. As we speak, more than seven million young people are neither in job nor in education or training. The situation is serious and Prime Minister Fico and I spent most of our time today discussing what has become one of the most pressing issues in most, if not all, of our Member States...

Finally, let me say that I have been informed of the professional preparations of your upcoming and first ever Presidency of the Council in 2016.

Press release after meeting with Fico

The last quarter of a century has seen many new beginnings for Slovakia. This year, your country is celebrating twenty years since its foundation. A peaceful foundation that will forever go down in History books: few countries came into being in such serene circumstances.

Next year will mark a triple anniversary:

• 25 years of freedom, with the end of Soviet oppression and the reunification of our Continent;
• 10 years since you became part of the European Union, returning where you had always belonged: at the heart of Europe;
• And five years since you joined the eurozone, adopting the single currency as your own.

An impressive set of milestones, to celebrate and reflect upon. Such a path can only lead to a journey of self-discovery. It is true for a country like Slovakia, but it is also true, as it is a common path, for our Union as a whole. And for all the countries in our Union, this collective self-discovery has intensified over the more recent years...

In the crisis, there has been much fear of a re-nationalisation of European politics. In fact, from where I stand it is clearly the other way round: what we are living through is rather the Europeanisation of national politics, and ultimately I am convinced it will make our common endeavour stronger. I can also put it differently. The age of polite indifference (sometimes even impolite) between the peoples in our countries is over: we now know that what happens in one country may also influence what happens in others too. And as this reality slowly sinks in, gradually it is also changing the way we envisage Europe, and ourselves as Europeans.

You see, for long, I believe we often looked at our Union mainly as a lever, a somehow external source of strength we could harness to improve the quality of our lives, to enshrine our principles and values, to widen our horizons and opportunities. Now this has come under pressure, under doubt: for the very first time, we have to defend the European idea. We have to prove that our approach on tackling the crisis produces concrete results, in terms of growth and jobs. That Europe is the solution and not the problem. And that the Union is "us".

Full speech