MPs Approve Slovakia’s Foreign and European Policy in 2020

MPs Approve Slovakia’s Foreign and European Policy in 2020

Bratislava, September 25 (TASR) – MPs on Friday approved a material called Slovakia’s Foreign and European Policy in 2020, which outlines the country’s foreign affairs priorities, TASR learnt on the same day.


The document says that the basic prerequisite for the security and sovereignty of Slovakia, as a country with objectively limited political, economic and military influence, is international co-operation, functional international institutions and respect for international law.

The authors declare that Slovakia wants to be an engaged and solid partner in the EU and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), actively participating in joint solutions strengthening the stability, security and prosperity of the Euro-Atlantic area.

“The Slovak Republic will support the further adaptation of NATO to the changed security environment with special regard to new security challenges and threats,” reads the material of the Foreign Ministry, assuring that Slovakia will continue to increase the share of defence spending to two percent of GDP by 2024, as well as to actively participate in NATO, EU and UN operations, missions and activities. “Slovakia will continue to contribute to NATO’s enhanced advanced presence in the Baltic states and to participate in training and advisory missions in Iraq and Afghanistan,” added the ministry.

As for ties with Russia, the authors of the document says that Slovakia will focus on developing bilateral co-operation with an emphasis on the economic area, while Slovakia’s foreign policy towards Russia will be further closely co-ordinated with the EU and NATO, including sanctions.

Slovakia’s position towards China will also correspond to EU policy. The country will be approached as “an important partner and at the same time an economic and technological competitor and a systemic rival promoting an alternative model of governance”.

According to the material, Slovakia continues to support the transformation of the countries of the Western Balkans in the process of further EU enlargement.

As part of the economic diplomacy, the main goal of which is to restore the performance of the Slovak economy as quickly as possible, activities will also focus on a possible process of economic transformation. “In addition to traditional priorities such as export diversification, internationalisation of Slovak companies and support for the inflow of foreign direct investment, economic diplomacy will focus on new challenges associated with innovation in synergy with green and digital transformation,” said the authors.