Foreign Policies

President: Slovakia Won't Disrupt Unity at NATO Summit

President Peter Pellegrini (stock photo by TASR)

        Bratislava, 17 June (TASR) - Slovakia won't disrupt unity at the upcoming NATO summit in the Hague, said President Peter Pellegrini following the round-table debate that he held with representatives of both coalition and opposition parties on Tuesday.
        At the same time, Slovakia will insist that any increase in defence spending should be spread over as long a period of time as possible and that dual-use spending should make up a significant portion of the total sum, said the president, adding that fulfilling this commitment will be the responsibility of the current but also future Slovak governments.
        The head of state confirmed that all the participants agreed that Slovakia should act as a responsible partner at the summit and not undermine consensus. The meeting was attended by Premier Robert Fico, Defence Minister Robert Kalinak (both Smer-SD), the leaders of coalition parties SNS and Voice-SD, as well as the chairs of opposition parties PS, KDH and SaS. The president also stressed that providing security for the people should be a priority for Slovakia of its own volition, regardless of whether someone asks or orders it to do so. The country should answer for itself whether it is in a position to defend itself against a possible attack.
        "Slovakia won't disrupt unity at the summit and will, of course, seek a consensus that will suit all 32 member states. On the other hand, Slovakia will insist that any increase in spending should be spread over as long a period of time as possible and that a significant part of the increased funds in the future should go on dual-use projects, i.e. also peaceful," said the president, adding that he plans to state at the summit that the specific manner and pace of fulfilling the commitment is and will be entirely in the hands of the government in power at the time.
        Pellegrini also thinks that Slovakia must invest further and more significantly in the Slovak arms industry. He pointed out that arms production is beginning to contribute significantly to GDP growth in Slovakia. Therefore, in his opinion, there's a need to have it contribute further to this growth.

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