Zelensky announces new ‘Carpathian Eight.’ Tusk and Vučić attend its first summit (but Fico doesn’t)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has unveiled a fresh international cooperation initiative called the "Carpathian Eight." The new format, dubbed "C8," brings together Ukraine and eight neighboring European nations: Romania, Serbia, Poland, Slovakia, Czechia, Austria, Hungary, and the European Union. Zelensky described the initiative as a means to unite the states, regions, and local communities within the Carpathian region, with participants aiming to collaborate on security, energy, logistics, and cross-border economic matters.

The inaugural summit of the "Carpathian Eight" commenced on September 18 in Ukraine's Ivano-Frankivsk region. Among the attendees were Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, and Romanian President Nicușor Dan. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who had announced plans to visit Ukraine the previous day, did not participate in the summit. Slovakia was represented at a lower diplomatic level during the meeting, according to a report from the Ukrainian news outlet European Pravda.

The summit is expected to attract around 550 business representatives, and Zelensky anticipates that investment and trade agreements worth a billion euros will be signed by the end of the event.