Vyrocna Sprava 2009 En

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Published by the Ministry of Foreign Affairsof the SlovakRepublicPublic Diplomacy Department

ISBN 978-80-88726-39-5

Annual ReportMinistry of Foreign Affairsof the Slovak RepublicForeign Policy in 2009


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To provide information and to promote Slovakia abroad 70,777 copies of promotional and information materials were purchased and sent to dip-lomatic missions and cultural centres.Besides that, the Department of Public Diplomacy prepared and provided thediplomatic missions and cultural centres on a regular basis with the economicand analytical periodicals Trend Watch and Ekonomika a obchod published inboth Slovak and English.

Editorial Activities in 2009In 2009 the Ministry of Foreign Affairsof the Slovak Republic, in closecoop-eration with the diplomatic missions and cultural centres of the Slovak Re-public as well as with external publishers, published several non-periodicalpublications and promotional materials:

200,000 copies of information lea ets and 200,000 stickers with contactdata were prepared for the Citizens Assistance and Services Centre of theMinistry of Foreign Affairsof theSlovakRepublic; to promote participation of Slovak citizens in elections to the EuropeanParliament 100,000 copies of promotional posters were produced;

in cooperation with the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Nicosia 500copies of non-periodical publications dedicated to the 20 th anniversary of the peace talks in Cyprus were published; the exhibition Velvet Revolution: Slovakia after 1989 dedicated to the 20 th an-niversary of the Velvet Revolution was arranged in cooperation with the TASR(The News Agency of the Slovak Republic) in Slovak, English, French and Polishversions. The exhibition was sent to all diplomatic missions and cultural cen-tres of the Slovak Republic and in November 2009 was also installed in theexhibition premises of the Ministry of Foreign Affairsof the SlovakRepublic; a set of ten large-size posters was prepared for all diplomatic missions andcultural centres; in cooperation with the Ministry of Defence of the Slovak Republic the pub-lication The Slovak Republic in NATOwas published in Ukrainian and Rus-sian for the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Kiev; in cooperation with the Language Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences the publication The Slovak Language, Languages in Slovakia was published in English; in cooperation with the GeoGraa PublishingHouse the promotionalpubli-cation Slovakia was published in English; in cooperation with AB Film the DVD Slovakiawas produced.

Ministry of Foreign Affairsof the Slovak Republic Publishing

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Oga ALGAYEROV Juraj SIVEK Diana TROFOV Miroslav LAJKSecretary of StateDeputy Minister

Secretary General Secretary of State Minister of Foreign Affairsof the Slovak Republic

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Annual Report. Ministry o Foreign Affairs o the Slovak RepublicForeign Policy in 2009

Ministry o Foreign Affairs o the Slovak Republic, Bratislava 2010All rights reserved.

Ministry o Foreign Affairs o the Slovak RepublicHlbok cesta 2833 36 Bratislava 37The Slovak Republic

Tel.: +421-2-5978-1111 (switchboard)Fax: +421-2-5978-3638 (3639)E-mail: in [email protected]: www.mzv.sk

Photographs:Database o the Ministry o Foreign Affairs o the Slovak Republic, Slovak News Agency, The NewsAgency o the Slovak Republic, Office o the President o the Slovak Republic, National Council o theSlovak Republic, Office o the Government o the Slovak Republic, Slovak Agency or InternationalDevelopment Cooperation (SlovakAid), UNPhoto (Paulo Figueiras), ADRA-Slovakia (Marek Sos)


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Table o Contents

4.3.2.

1.

Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................... 5

Supreme Representatives and Foreign Policy .................................................................................... 7

Foreign Policy of the Slovak Republic in 2009 .................................................................................... 8

A Safe and Democratic World ....................................................................................................................... 11Slovakia in NATO .................................................................................................................................................... 12Slovakia in the OSCE and the Cor u Process .............................................................................................. 14The Western Balkans: Our Long-term Priority .......................................................................................... 16Slovakia in International Organisations ...................................................................................................... 18

A Successful and Prosperous Slovakia ................................................................................................... 21Slovak Economic Diplomacy ............................................................................................................................. 22

Slovakia and the V4 ............................................................................................................................................. 24Good Relations with Neighbours .................................................................................................................. 26SlovakAid 2009 ...................................................................................................................................................... 29Energy Security ...................................................................................................................................................... 32

The Interests of Slovakia in an Efficient EU ......................................................................................... 35Ratifcation o the Treaty o Lisbon ................................................................................................................ 36Slovaks in the EU institutions .......................................................................................................................... 37Coordination o EU Sectoral Policies ............................................................................................................ 38Eastern Partnership ............................................................................................................................................. 40

Serving Our Citizens and Slovakia Open to the World ................................................................... 43Consular Service .................................................................................................................................................... 44Services to the Public........................................................................................................................................... 46Honorary Consulates ........................................................................................................................................... 47


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Not only does Slovakia or-mulate its oreign policy po-sitions in a clear and com-prehensible ashion andon the basis o values thataccord with European andEuro-Atlantic approaches,

but it is also capable o de-ending any possible particularities o her po-sitions in a reliable way.

Ivan Gaparovi, President o the Slovak Republic, addressdelivered during the Annual Con erence on the ForeignPolicy o the Slovak Republic, 28 April 2009

We need to do more todayto be able to do less tomor-row.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen Secretary

I expect that in the newelectoral term, but espe-cially in the new fnancialterm, there will fnally pre-vail a tendency to make theEuropean Union, assisted bythe European Parliament,a real power that is to playa role in solving global problems just as theUSA or other world powers do.

Pavol Paka, Speaker o the National Council o the SlovakRepublic during the elections to the European Parliament.

It is a shame that theTreaty o Lisbon was notpresented in a more attrac-tive way. It does not seemto be a regulation o majorrelevance, but in act it isan important internationaldocument.

Robert Fico, Prime Minister o the Slovak Republic on ratifca-


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The Slovak Foreign Service has been through another de-manding year. It was a year in which all areas o social li ewere affected by the global economic crisis. The crisis alsoconsiderably affected the order o our priorities in the feldo oreign policy, as our top priority nowadays is the fght

to mitigate the impact o the crisis on the economic andsocial li e o Slovakia.Protection o the countrys economic security, support or

Slovak export activities, intensifcation o efforts to makeSlovakia more attractive or new oreign investors, support

or businesses and more ocused activities in internationaleconomic organisations in close cooperation with govern-ment, the non-governmental sector and business circleswere last year key parts o Slovak economic diplomacy.

Slovakia also actively contributed to the search or jointinternational solutions and steps in the area o anti-crisismanagement. We thus became part o the internationalefforts to restore stability and sustainable developmentto the world, to seek ways leading to a more responsibleand more consistent international dialogue, a part o theefforts to achieve unprecedented global coordination o anti-crisis measures and preventive steps to reduce newglobal threats.

The year 2009 was one o signifcant anniversaries: fve years ago Slovakia joined the European Union and NATO,sixty years ago NATO was ounded, twenty years ago Slo-vakia ormed part o the important social changes alsoknown as the Velvet Revolution. We also made use o theseanniversaries to present our country positively the mes-

prestige and mitigated the adverse consequences o theeconomic and fnancial crisis. A year ago I mentionedhere that in 2009 the key words o domestic and oreignpolicy should be solidarity and cohesion, as these are ap-proaches to show us the way out o the crisis as well as

towards greater precision in relations. The reality provedthis expectation to be true as the benefts and signif-cance o European integration, the strength o solidarityand mutual assistance among the members o the Euro-pean Union became evident just at the time o crisis. Itwas the member countries o the European Union that inearly 2009 assisted Slovakia in a solidary ashion to solvethe issue o the gas crisis.

Last year was exceptionally important or the European

Union rom the point o view o its uture unctioning. Fi-nalisation o the complex process o theTreaty o Lisbonsratifcation in the member countries and its entry into

orce as o 1 December 2009 brought about several majorstructural changes in the institutional arrangements andpractical unctioning o the European Union. It is a matter

or satis action that theTreaty does not weaken Slovakiasstatus and voice within the community. The establishmento the European External Action Service is also o major im-portance or Slovak diplomacy and we wish to adequatelyparticipate in its operation. A new European Commissionis currently just taking over. In the Commission Slovakia isproperly represented by the Vice-President o the EuropeanCommission in charge o Inter-Institutional Relations andAdministration. The act that Slovakia succeeded in win-

Dear Readers,


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or the European Union and its Eastern Partners to cometogether and to increase stability in Eastern Europe.

Slovakia last year ormed part o the North AtlanticAlliances responses to the dynamic developments in theinternational situation. The Alliance ocused mainly onthe military mission in A ghanistan, whose worsening se-curity situation required decisions on urther military re-in orcements. The need to ulfl obligations as an ally alsoled Slovakia to participate in ulflling this objective andto decide on rein orcing her contingent in that country.New security challenges, the uture o transatlantic rela-tions as well as NATOs uture relations with partners orthe issue o NATOs urther enlargement led the Allianceto commence intensive preparation o the new StrategicConcept. It is my pleasure to state that last year Slovakiaalso actively participated in all the processes just men-

tioned.Last year it was bilateral relations, especially those withour allies within the Union and NATO, that were o specialimportance. I would like to emphasise our interest in goodrelations with our neighbours, which is one o our mostimportant oreign policy priorities. The issue o our bilater-al relations with the Republic o Hungary, which was beinglimited by our southern neighbours to the only problem-atic issue o these relations questions connected with

the position o citizens o the Slovak Republic belonging toa Hungarian national minority un ortunately demandedtoo much energy last year. Taking recent developments intoconsideration, our positions and course o action, aimedas they are at a pragmatic, objective and, in terms o Eu-ropean values, standard solution o possible disputes, areproving to be right. Slovakia could not yield to a deliberateinternationalisation o the issue, a manipulation and pres-sure that were not good or mutual trust and that harmedthe reputation o both sides abroad.

Regional cooperation and especially the Visegrad Fourwere o exceptional signifcance in the feld o the oreignpolicy activities o the Slovak Republic. The cooperationconfrmed its positive potential in relation to the WesternBalkans agenda, the Unions Eastern policy and energy se-

Consistent compliance with international obligations andprinciples o international law ranks among the undamen-tal principles o our oreign policy. We were active in the UNand the Council o Europe as well as in the Organisation orSecurity and Co-operation in Europe and, despite the crisis,we still continued to provide development assistance. TheSlovak Foreign Service worked more actively to protect therights and interests o our citizens abroad. In terms o qual-ity the consular service was advanced to a higher level thatis, in terms o organisation and methods, compatible withthe requirements o our membership in the Schengen sys-tem as well as with other international obligations.

Last year we enthusiastically commenced materializa-tion o the public diplomacy concept, which was re ectedinter alia in the multi-departmental concept o Slovakiaspresentation abroad. I am convinced that the intensifed in-

volvement o other state and governmental institutions aswell as the non-governmental sector in the creation o or-eign policy and Slovakias image abroad makes our opera-tion richer in international terms, more complex and morelegitimate.

Dear Readers, 2009 was an exceptional year in international relations

as it brought a lot o serious new global challenges and se-curity threats, but also many examples o unity, cohesion,solidarity and cooperation on the part o the internationalcommunity in seeking the common responses o mankindto such challenges and threats. Slovakia did fnd her wayin this common endeavour, did really contribute to it and,by a balanced policy compatible in its values with Europeancivilisation, did prove her trustworthiness, reliability and re-sponsibility. I very much wish that 2010 will confrm the ullcontinuity o this direction o Slovakia.


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Supreme Representatives and Foreign Policy

In early January the President o the Slovak Republic Ivan Gaparovinegotiated with his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yushchenko on renewalo natural gas supplies to Slovakia.

For the frst time in history the Slovak Republic hosted the in ormalmeeting o ministers o de ence o the Alliance. Slovakia was on thisoccasion visited by Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Secretary-General o NATO,who was also officially received by Robert Fico, the Prime Minister. NATOoperations abroad, the possibilities o rein orced Slovak participation in

A ghanistan and preparation o the new Strategic Concept o NATO werediscussed frst and oremost but NATO policy in the Balkans and relationsbetween NATO and the EU and those between NATO and Russia wereincluded in their discussion as well.

On the invitation o the President o the Slovak Republic Ivan Gaparovi,Slovakia was or the frst time visited by Abdullah I I bin al-Hussein,King o the Hashemite Kingdom o Jordan. The visits objective was theintensifcation o political dialogue and revitalization o mutual visits toimprove economic and investment cooperation.

The Act on the State Language was one o the topics discussed betweenPavol Paka, Speaker o the National Council o the Slovak Republic, andJerzy Buzek, President o the European Parliament, on the occasion o the latters official visit to Slovakia. Both representatives also discussedcooperation between the European Parliament and the National Council o the Slovak Republic as well as the situation in the European Union.

In June Slovakia was visited by Javier Solana, High Representative orCommon Foreign and Security Policy o the European Union, who alsodelivered a speech to the meeting o the Heads o Diplomatic Missions


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ity issues in relations with Hungary and, to the detriment o both sides, a massive internationalisation o bilateral issues.Relations with Austria addressed pragmatic aspects o mu-tual and regional cooperation projects in energy and trans-port in rastructure. As regards relations with the Ukraine,Slovakia put emphasis on economic and cross-border coop-eration, security o energy supplies and on support or inte-gration processes towards the EU, the WTO and NATO.

In providingdevelopment assistance Slovakia in 2009did, even in conditions o decreasing domestic sources,continue to ulfl her international obligations o assist-ance to developing countries. The country ocused on theefficiency o her assistance, a more rational distributionand the ensuring o its meaning ul use.

The Interests o Slovakia in an Efficient EUBy joining the Eurozone on 1 January 2009 Slovakia suc-cess ully fnalised her complete integration into the EU. Thecountrys prestige was increased, adverse consequences o the global fnancial and economic crisis on the countrys f-nancial sector were mitigated, while currency stability waspreserved. The country started to beneft more actively romits membership in the EU through more intensive use o structural unds and direct payments or through participa-tion in specialised programmes o the EU. Slovakia seeks to

return to the quality o ulflment o the so-called Maastrichtcriteria o stability and growth o the period prior to the crisis.The timely ratifcation o theTreaty o Lisbonin 2008 sup-ported the deepening o the European integration processand consolidation o the internal institutions o the EU aimedat strengthening a democratic, sa e, in economic terms dy-namic and prosperous and, in social terms, stable Europe.

Slovakia also supportedTurkeys integration ambitions,but at the same also emphasised the necessity o ulfll-ing the pre-entry criteria. Slovakias unique contribution isalso present in relation to the situation in Cyprus, where itacts as the key mediator o negotiations in the so-called bi-communal dialogue between Greek and Turkish Cypriots.

The Eastern dimension o Slovak oreign policy wasstrengthened by interest in stabilising the situation in

sources permitted, Slovak communities abroad with theirassistance in preserving and developing their language,cultural and national identity.

The year 2009 was the 5th anniversary o Slovakias mem-bership in the EU and NATO, the 60th anniversary o the NATOand the 20th anniversary o the Velvet Revolution. These an-niversaries were actively utilised bypublic diplomacyto ar-range worthy commemorative events at home and abroad.

Services to Slovak citizens who ound themselves in anemergency abroad were the ocus o attention o thecon-sular serviceo the Foreign Ministry. The implementation o the Slovak oreign policy includes as an integral part a net-work o diplomatic missions and cultural centres. In viewo the pre erence given to the region o Western Balkans,embassies were opened in Skopje and Tirana in 2009.

Modern Slovak DiplomacyOne o the elements o optimalizing the internal operationso the Ministry was in the period in question the introductiono the strategic planning system. The implementation o stra-tegic planning within the Ministry brought lessons that willbe re ected in efforts to make the system more efficient inthe upcoming period. In 2009 project management started tobe introduced as a tool to carry out specifc tasks o the Minis-try. Several projects were launched on a pilot basis.

Priorities o the MFA in 2009The main objectives o the MFA in 2009 were ormulated

in the document Aims and Objectives o the Foreign Policy in2009 that is based onA Success ul Slovakia in a Sa e World , thelong-term MFA strategy. In 2009 the MFA ocused mainly on:

development o economic diplomacy;development o neighbourhood relations and cooperationwithin the V4;strengthening bilateral cooperation with key partners;support or the NATO trans ormation process and provi-sion o adequate participation o Slovakia in the opera-tions and missions o NATO;creation o a avourable global environment in the UN and


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1.I

n 2009 the Slovak Republic also success ullybuilt up the credit and position o a well-re-spected member o the international com-

munity capable o helping to solve the mostdemanding global and regional issues. Throughher activities in the UN, NATO, CoE and the OSCESlovakia, a member country o the EU, alsocontributed to building a sa e and democratic

world, spreading the values o democracy, ruleo law and respect or human rights.In 2009 Slovakia effectively carried out her

activities within the UN and its specializedagencies and urthered priorities o her oreignpolicy as well as the principles, values and in-terests o the Union in the feld o strengthen-ing the tools o multilateralism and an effec-tive system o international relations, with theUNs role being central to these efforts.

The urther deepening o transatlantic tiesas an expression o strategic partnership be-tween North America and Europe is necessary

or security o the world. How success ully thiscooperation was conceived is confrmed by the

A Sa e andDemocratic World

The progress o relations between NATOand the EU is o great importance or urtherdevelopment o the security environment inthe Euro-Atlantic area. In 2009 no progresso practical relevance was, however, made inthis regard concerning the area o joint activi-ties within operations and on the political andstrategic level.

Last year the central topic within the OSCEwas the discussion on the uture o Europeansecurity re erred to as the Cor u Process. Duringthe Ministerial Council the OSCE participatingstates confrmed their interest in orwarding thediscussion on the uture o European securityon a qualitatively higher level; by adopting theDeclarationand Decision on the Cor u Process the issues and orm o discussion were defnedaccording to which the process is to be contin-ued under the Kazakh OSCE chairmanship.

Within the context o the Russian suspensiono theTreaty on Conventional Forces in Europe Slovakia supported dialogue on the parallelaction plan proposal as well as seeking solu-

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In 2009 Slovakia commemorated the 5thanniversary o her joining NATO. Last yearSlovakia also acted in NATO as a reliableand success ul ally that in a transparent and

Slovakia in NATO

Enduring attention was also paid to the issueo development o relations o Russia and NATO.Moreover on 22-23 October 2009 the SlovakRepublic or the frst time in its history hostedthe in ormal meeting o ministers o de enceo the Alliances member countries. The meet-ing was the largest international event so ar inSlovakia. It was, in terms o contents, logisticsand its social aspects, highly appreciated andwas utilized to positively present Slovakia ona broad international level. NATO Secretary-General A.F. Rasmussen and Supreme AlliedCommander Europe Admiral J.G. Stavridis bothvisited Slovakia on this occasion.

One o the main objectives o the Slovakiasoreign policy last year was support or NATO

enlargement Albania and Croatia joined theAlliance. Slovakia also actively supported othernations o the Western Balkans interested inNATO membership, especially Macedonia. Wepromoted granting the Membership ActionPlan (MAP) not just to Montenegro, which wasgranted MAP in December 2009, but on po-litical grounds to Bosnia and Herzegovina also,which will be offered MAP once the criteria are

ulflled.The embassy o the Slovak Republic in Kievsuccess ully ulflled its task as the NATO Con-tact Point Embassy or the Ukraine. Slovak ex-perts provided the Ukraine with their experi-ences and expert assistance in working out herFirst Annual Action Planand continued to carryout activities aimed at providing more in or-mation on NATO to the Ukrainian public.

We Wish to Concentrateon Renewal and Stabilization

importance, Slovakia participates militarily in the ISAFoperation and at the same time provides A ghanistanwith development and humanitarian assistance. We

On 22-23 October 2009an in ormal meeting o

de ence ministers o theNATO member nations was

held in Bratislava. In thePicture, the Slovak De enceMinister Jaroslav Baka, the

Alliances Secretary-Gen-eral Anders Fogh Rasmus-

sen and the US Secretary o De ence Robert Gates.

predictable ashion makes use o her NATOmembership to promote her oreign policy in-terests.

Active in NATOOur oreign policy priorities within NATO were

strengthening the general security o the Euro-Atlantic area, the creation o avourable condi-tions necessary or success ully acing globalchallenges and threats and expanding the areao liberty, democracy, respect or human rights,law and order and good governance with spe-cial emphasis on those regions representing pri-ority areas o the oreign policy o Slovakia i.e.Ukraine and the Western Balkans.

From the Forum o theSlovak Security Com-

munity (Bratislava,September 2009)


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1.

security orces will enable us to hand over respon-sibility or the country more quickly to the A ghansthemselves. Recent developments in the ISAF opera-

Something needs to be done to improve the qual-ity o li e o the A ghan people. This is very mucha concrete expression o international solidarity.

In the NATO OperationsIn 2009, with the aim o ulflling the objectivesassumed and to demonstrate solidarity towardsits allies, Slovakia took an active and independ-ent approach to managing her participation inoperations under NATO command. Slovakiasparticipation was harmonized on a continuousbasis with the actual resources o the country.Within NATO, with regard to the feld o interna-tional crisis management and the area o solv-ing the issues o post-con ict stabilization anddevelopment, Slovakia supported a complex ap-proach. In this connection Slovakia consistentlypromoted and supported closer institutionalcooperation by NATO with the EU, the UN, theOSCE and the A rican Union.

In 2009 Slovakia also actively supported theefforts o the international community to sta-bilize and develop A ghanistan as well as theregion as a whole. The main orms o supportstill include continued participation o theArmed Forces o the Slovak Republic (AFSR) inthe ISAF operation. In June 2009 the NationalCouncil o the Slovak Republic passed an in-crease in the number o troops participating in

the ISAF operation to 262 as well as enhancingtheir mandate. The centre o military activitieswithin ISAF ocused on the provinces o Uruz-gan and Kandahar, in the territory o whichSlovak troops participated in guarding impor-tant buildings, clearing mines, training A ghannational security orces, reconstructing withinthe Dutch provincial reconstruction team and

ulflling other important tasks.

The AFSR has already been active in KFOR inKosovo or ten years already. Since February 2002a Slovak mechanized company has, togetherwith Czech troops, operated in a joint base atajkovac. In 2009 a Slovak unit o 139 troops par-ticipated within a Multinational Battle GroupCentre under Irish command in the Decisive En-terprise operation. In 2009 members o the Slo-vak unit on a regular basis carried out patrollingo the operation space, guarded buildings andhistoric site and sa eguarded local in rastructure

as well as the sa e return o re ugees. Through-out 2009 Slovak troops have signifcantly partici-pated in creating conditions or restoring peace-

ul coexistence o Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo.At the same time plans or a gradual decrease innumber o Slovak troops in KFOR were elaborat-ed in connection with a planned gradual curtail-ment and trans ormation o KFOR to a level o so-called deterrent presence.

More at:www.nato.int (NATO)

Besides other topics, theISAF operation in A ghani-

stan was also discussed byMinister o Foreign AffairsMiroslav Lajk with hisUSA counterpart HillaryClinton

The high level o ourtroops prepared-ness was personallychecked by SlovakiasForeign MinisterMiroslav Lajk in theLe Training Centrebe ore their departure

or the ISAF operation


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Discussions within the Organisation orSecurity and Co-operation in Europe(OSCE) were in 2009 unambiguouslydominated by the issue o the uture o Euro-pean security that became known as the Cor uProcess. A ter regular specialized negotiationswere held in Vienna, the process succeeded inbecoming frmly anchored within the OSCE andits cross-dimensional character was strength-ened through all three dimensions o the OSCEi.e. the political-military, economic and envi-ronmental and human rights dimensions.

Slovakia was visible rom the very start o thediscussion on the uture o European security.During the EU coordination meetings as well asduring the Cor u in ormal negotiations Slovakia

It is Possible within the OSCEto Check CFSP Functionality

What was 2009 like or the OSCE?There was a crisis o international relations deepen-

ing in the decade rom the last OSCE summit held in

To what does the OSCE owe its resurrection?Positive developments within the OSCE were cata-

lysed by, paradoxically, the Russian invasion o Georgiain 2008. Russia had, in parallel, presented a proposalon elaboration o a legally binding treaty on militaryand security arrangements in Europe. Approval o the

Slovakia in the OSCE and the Cor u Process

presented concrete proposals to dynamize theprocess and supported constructive approachpresented by the other delegations, includingRussia. Slovakia urged that energy security be-come an integral part o the Cor u Process. Slova-kia also requested that all undamental humanrights be approached in the same manner andthat none o them be pre erred over others.

Energy SecurityA ter the gas crisis erupted Slovakia, throughher Permanent Mission to the InternationalOrganisations in Vienna (PM SR), pointed outthat the OSCE could, with regard to its exist-ing mandate, pay more attention to the issueo energy security. To revive the issue withinthe OSCE Slovakia brought about and, in coop-eration with the Greek chairmanship, arrangedthe Strengthening Energy Security in the OSCEArea con erence held in Bratislava in July 2009.Thanks to quality participation and use uldiscussions in the con erence a considerablyincreased number o countries now supportintensifcation o the OSCE engagement in thisarea. Slovakia there ore resolved to prepare

a dra t ministerial decision on energy security.To present and to explain the concept and theintention the PM SR organised several coordi-nation meetings in Vienna at ambassadorialand expert levels that were also attended byenergy experts rom Bratislava.

On 6-7 July 2009 thecon erence on Strengthen-ing Energy Security in theOSCE area was held in theMinistry o Foreign Affairs


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1.

The OSCE is not just a successor to the HelsinkiProcess, but also an organisation that essentiallyin uenced the strengthening o democracy andstability in the post-Soviet area in general, includingCentral Europe. I am convinced that i it were not orthe OSCE, security developments in Europe would be

What has been so ar and what is now the role o the EU and Slovakia in the discussion on the utureo European security?

The Cor u Process offers an opportunity to in u-ence what the security map o Europe is to look likein 5 to 10 years and this applies not only to Slo-

Slovakia was one o the acilitators o negoti-ations on the fnal wording o the decision andconsiderably contributed to achieving a com-promise solution and to adopting the docu-ment during the Ministerial Council in Athens.

Cooperation with the OSCEInstitutionsIn connection with the adoption o the Act onthe State Language and with the developmentsin Slovak-Hungarian relations Slovakia, throughthe PM SR in Vienna, actively communicatedwith the OSCE institutions (mainly with theHigh Commissioner on National Minorities, theSecretary-General and the Office or DemocraticInstitutions and Human Rights) as well as withrepresentatives o the diplomatic corps. Slova-kia succeeded in preventing the topic o Slovak-Hungarian relations rom being discussed inindividual OSCE ora. At the same time the PMSR actively supported preservation o the exist-ing mechanism o activities and the mandate o the High Commissioner on National Minoritiesas well as an increase in the budget o his office.In connection with adoption o the Press Act

Slovakia intensively cooperated with the OSCERepresentative on Freedom o the Media.

Slovaks in the OSCESlovakia urther promoted competent andskilled Slovak experts to positions within the

OSCE Secretariat as well within the OSCE in-stitutions. There are currently three Slovak ex-perts and six technical staff working there. Asregards the OSCE missions, there are six Slovakexperts including ubomr Kopaj, OSCE ProjectCo-ordinator in Ukraine. Slovakia participatedin the activities o the ODIHR by sending tenobservers to missions to observe elections inOSCE participating states (Moldova includ-ing repeated parliamentary elections Alba-nia, Macedonia and Montenegro).

Within the OSCE Slovakia continued to act

as Che de File or Croatia and also supportedCroatia in its efforts towards close operation o the OSCE Office in Zagreb. On the other handthe Slovak Republic did support a strong and e -

ective presence o the OSCE in Kosovo and inBosnia and Herzegovina.

More at:www.osce.org (OSCE)

Knut Vollebaek, the OSCEHigh Commissioner onNational Minorities, visitedSlovakia several times to

amiliarize himsel moreclosely with the issue o the amendment to the Acton the State Language


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In 2009 Slovak oreign policy still actively pur-sued one o its main oreign policy priorities relations with the nations o the WesternBalkans i.e. Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,Montenegro, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia(including Kosovo).

Multilateral EffortsWithin these multilateral activities Slovakiacontinued to contribute to stability and se-curity using diplomatic instruments and par-ticipating in international missions. MiroslavLajk, the current Foreign Minister, was inearly 2009 the High Representative o the In-ternational Community and EU Special Repre-sentative or Bosnia and Herzegovina. In thesecond hal o the year he, as Foreign Minister,participated in the international efforts o theEU and the USA to achieve progress in the areao that countrys constitutional re orm. WhileSlovak Armed Forces participated in the EUFORAlthea mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina andin the KFOR mission in Kosovo, Slovak policeofficers ulflled tasks within the EUPM mis-sion in Bosnia and Herzegovina and within the

EULEX mission in Kosovo. In 2009 we persistedin promoting our principled approaches con-sisting in support or the territorial integrity o Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as in relationto a solution to the issue o Kosovo.

Bilateral ActivitiesIn 2009, bilateral relations and economic co-operation were urther developed. Contacts onthe level o supreme state representatives wereaccompanied by business missions and busi-ness ora aimed especially in increase in tradeas well as at other orms o economic coopera-tion. As the volume o cooperation and that o the relevant agreements between individual

The Western Balkans: Our Long-term Priority

dialogue between experts connected with Eu-ropean and Euro-Atlantic integration as well aspolitical dialogue is being enhanced, contactson the level o members o government werealso enhanced. Slovak embassies were openedin Tirana and Skopje.

Passing on the ExperienceO ever-increasing importance is Slovakiaspassing on to partners the experience sheacquired in the accession processes to Euro-Atlantic structures. As a member o thesegroupings Slovakia actively promoted and stillpromotes urther enlargement o the Union aswell as the Alliances open door policy. The

ollowing are the areas in which considerableprogress was made in 2009:

Croatia made considerable progress in heraccession negotiations;the Council o the European Union askedthe European Commission to elaborate anopinion on the applications o Montenegroand Albania, which should lead to their be-ing granting the status o candidate coun-tries;

Serbia fled her EU application and, on thebasis o a Council decision, implementationo theTemporary Agreement started;the European Commission recommendedEU accession negotiations with Macedonia;Albania and Croatia joined NATO in April2009;in December ministers o oreign affairs o the Alliance member nations decided togrant the Membership Action Plan(MAP) toMontenegro.A specifc area shared with Bosnia and

Herzegovina was know-how acquired duringSlovakias non-permanent membership in theUN Security Council as the ormer prepares or

With his Macedoniancounterpart Antonio

Milooski

With Ministero Foreign Affairs o

Bosnia and Herzegovi-

na Sven Alkalaj

Minister o ForeignAffairs o Serbia Vuk

Jeremi during his visitto Slovakia

1


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1.Considerable progress that will stimulate ac-

celeration o the Western Balkans integrationinto the European and Euro-Atlantic structureswas made by the decision o the EU on intro-duction o a visa- ree regime or those citizenso Montenegro, Macedonia and Serbia (except

or Kosovo) who have passports with biometricdata in the event o their travelling to countrieso the Schengen Area. Slovakia supported thisstep on the expert level as well as by arrangingevents on the issue. It is necessary to empha-size that Slovakia promotes as rapid as possiblea visa liberalization in relation to the remain-ing nations o the Western Balkans.

Development AssistanceThe provision o development assistance to theWestern Balkans was not discontinued in 2009.Our assistance was aimed in the frst place atsupport or the integration efforts o the re-gions individual nations. Specifc orms o coop-eration and projects, including twinnings and

expert exchange, were developing. Besides thatthe building up o in rastructure was support-ed, especially as regards those felds in whichcertain vital conditions necessary or sustaina-ble development need to be achieved, especiallyas a part o settling recent con icts. During thevisit o Miroslav Lajk, Minister o Foreign A -

airs o the Slovak Republic, to Belgrade the 10th anniversary o the Bratislava Process was com-memorated with our Serbian riends.

The most important activities and meetings with representatives o WesternBalkans nations in 2009 held abroad:AlbaniaSeptember: the oreign ministers o Slovakia and Albania met in New York on the occasion o the

UN General Assembly.Bosnia and Herzegovina1-2 September: Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajk o icially visited Bosnia and Herzegovina and

as a guest delivered a speech at a meeting o Heads o Diplomatic Missions o Bosnia and Herzegovina.

8-9 October: Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajk took part, on the invitation o the Swedish EUPresidency, in negotiations with the political representatives o Bosnia and Herze-govina held in Sarajevo.

19-21 October: Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajk took part, on the invitation o the SwedishEU Presidency, in negotiations with the political representatives o Bosnia andHerzegovina held in Sarajevo (Butmir).

Montenegro8-9 June: Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajk paid a working visit to Montenegro.

President Ivan Gaparoviwith his Serbian counter-part Boris Tadi duringthe ormers visit toBelgrade


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Activities in the UNWithin the ramework o her activities in theUnited Nations and the UN system o organisa-tions and in coordination with the EU membernations, Slovakia supported processes aimed atmitigating adverse consequences o the crisis onmaintaining order in international relations. Thecommitted approach o the Slovak Republic wasexpressed by the active participation o ForeignMinister Miroslav Lajk as head o the delega-tion o the Slovak Republic to the official parto the 64th session o the UN General Assemblyin New York on 20-26 September 2009. Slova-kia actively participated in intergovernmentalnegotiations on the re orm o the UN SecurityCouncil and continued to promote the consist-ent and complex approach by the UN to securitysector re orm (SSR), acted as a coordinator o theso-called basic group or SSR and led the Groupo Friends o SSR. In cooperation with Argen-tina we arranged an international seminar tosupport the role o the UN in the feld o SSR inLatin America and the Caribbean that was heldin Buenos Aires on 28-29 September 2009. Co-

Slovakia in International Organisations

chairs o the seminar were J. Taiana and MiroslavLajk, oreign ministers o Argentine and Slova-kia respectively.

In 2009 Slovakia, in accordance with the con-cept o her activities in the international crisismanagement operations approved by the Gov-ernment, continued her activities in UN peacemissions. Members o the Slovak Armed Forcesparticipate in the mission in Cyprus (UNFICYP)and in the UN observer mission operating on theborders o Israel, Syria and Lebanon (UNTSO).

During elections held in New York on 26 Octo-ber 2009 Slovakia was or the frst time in her his-tory elected a member o the UN Economic andSocial Council (ECOSOC) or three years (2010-2012).

Slovakia was, during the 36th session o theCon erence o the UN Food and Agriculture Or-ganisation (FAO) held in Rome in November2009, elected a member o the 49-strong FAOCouncil or 2009-2012.

Slovakia was, during the 35th Session o theGeneral Con erence o the UN Educational, Sci-entifc and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) heldin Paris in October 2009, elected a member o

UNESCOs Executive Council or 2009-2013. An-other important success that Slovakia achievedwithin UNESCO was the enhancing o the entryto the Castle o Spi and sites situated in the sur-roundings o the City o Levoa and the work o Master Paul o Levoa in the World Heritage Listapproved by the World Heritage Committee dur-ing its 33rd Session held in Seville in July 2009.

Within the Office o the United Nations High

Commissioner or Re ugees in Geneva Slovakiawas last year commended in connection withthe implementation o a project o relocation tothird countries o a part o the Palestinian re u-gees rom a UNHCR re ugee camp situated onthe border o Iraq and Syria.

The Minister o ForeignAffairs addressed the

64th session o the UNGeneral Assembly

Slovakia in Bodies o International Organisationsrom January 2010: a member o the UN Economic and Social Council

(ECOSOC) or 2010-2012;a member o the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) or 2008-2011;

rom October 2009: a member o UNESCOs Executive Board or 2009-2013;a member o the ollowing bodies o UNESCO:

or 2007-2011 Slovakia is a member o the International CoordinatingCouncil o the Man and the Biosphere Programme o UNESCO;Slovakia was elected Vice-chair o the Intergovernmental Committeeo UNESCOs International Hydrological Programme (IHP) or 2005-2009;in 2005-2009 Slovakia was a member o the IntergovernmentalBioethics Committee (IGBC)

rom 1 January 2008: a member o the Executive Board o the UND l P /UN P l i F d (UNDP/UNFPA)

Foreign MinisterMiroslav Lajk with

the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

1


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1.ably revived in 2009. Slovakia supported thoseprocesses, including prevention, that help iden-ti y threats o proli eration o WMD and elimi-nate them effectively. In this regard Slovakia con-tinued her long-term policy o support or andpromotion o effective multilateralism.

Today we are witnessing a renaissance in theuse o nuclear energy, which is one o those so-lutions that can be depended on to meet grow-ing energy demands and at the same time acethe threat o global warming. A pre-conditiono the success ul use and development o nu-clear energy is its sa e and peace ul exploita-tion. Important or the achievement o thisobjective is the activity o the InternationalAtomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In 2009 the or-ganisation represented or Slovakia an areao natural interest and Slovakia promoted thebalanced development o all the undamentalpillars o the agency, continued to provide na-tional expertise applicable to a wide range o the Agencys activities and at the same timecontinued cooperation with the IAEA in thefeld o technical cooperation projects in Slo-vakia.

In the summary o trends in the feld o nu-clear non-proli eration 2009 was an importantperiod or theComprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). There is once again a real opportunity

or the treaty to come into effect and thus to in-troduce a unique instrument o supervision o compliance with the global ban on nuclear ex-plosions in the shape o the CTBT organisation.Slovakias concrete contribution to its activities

in 2009 was a CTBTO NG09 feld training inStupava that served to check the capabilities o the organisation, currently being built, in theimportant feld o detection o inert gases.

Slovakias chairmanship o the ExecutiveCouncil o the Organisation or Prohibition o

the Convention on the Rights o the Child thattook place during the June session o the Council.Slovakia success ully handled the role o chie sponsor o the resolution, which was co-spon-sored by another 50 UN member nations rom allregional groups. Appreciation o Slovakias meritsin relation to this initiative was confrmed by theselection o a Slovak representative to chair thefrst stage o the working groups negotiationsheld success ully in December.

In 2009 the frst review o the human rightsrecord o Slovakia was carried out within the

ramework o the new Councils mechanism Universal Periodic Review . The UN HumanRights Council in September acknowledgedSlovakias open approach and consensuallyadopted the fnal review report in which Slo-vakia accepted most o the recommendationsmade by the UN member states.

In 2009 the Permanent Representative o theSlovak Republic to the UN in Geneva was electeda member o the Working Group on Situations,a consultative body o the Council. In 2009 a Slo-vak expert started his our-year term in the UNCommittee on the Rights o the Child. The expert

is the frst Slovak representative elected a mem-ber o a UN treaty human rights body in the his-tory o the independent Slovakia.

In September 2009 Foreign Minister MiroslavLajk signed theOptional Protocol to the Inter- national Covenant on Economic, Social and Cul- tural Rights, which provides individuals or groupso individuals with the option to fle notices onviolations o this category o human rights.

From 1 July 2009 Slovakia has been chair o the Decade o Roma Inclusion 2005 2015 international programme aimed at improvingthe status o Roma in Europe.

More at:www.un.org (UN),www.unhcr.org (UNHCR),

www. ao.org (FAO),www.iaea.org (IAEA),www.unesco.org (UNESCO),www.cern.org (CERN),www.opcw.org (OPCW)

Pavol Paka, Speaker o the Parliament, paid anofficial visit to Cyprus

on 16-18 March 2009.On in picture, he isentering the UNFICYPHeadquarters.


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2.A Success ul andProsperous Slovakia

The global recession and threats to the sta-ble development o our economy prede-termine new priorities or Slovak oreign

policy. In view o the act that our economy isextremely open and export oriented, with theproportion o exports to GDP amounting to85%, one o these priorities is strengtheningthe economic dimension o the Slovak oreign

service. Slovakias international linkage is evenmore emphasized by the considerable share o oreign businesses in our GDP.The Foreign Ministrys key priority in 2009

was the mitigation o adverse impacts o thecrisis on Slovakia. This objective also regulatedthe internal, organisational and conceptualchanges that helped us ocus on several prin-cipal areas o our activities, namely enhancing

coordination o all the players in the feld o external economic relations, support or pro-investment and pro-export promotional activi-ties abroad, search or the best experience andpractice o other nations, intensifed activitieswithin international organisations and institu-

ports, to provide Slovak exporters with consist-ent help in promoting their products in oreignmarkets and in diversi ying exports, which areat present to a considerable extent orientedtowards EU markets (86%). We are trying to bequite clear about all the tasks assigned to the

oreign service in individual segments o busi-ness and the economy.

The Ministry also seeks possibilities to fghtthe crisis within international organisationsand does so frst and oremost within the EU.This is not just a matter o drawing euro unds,it also concerns the application o all the stim-ulation measures we are offered by interna-tional institutions as well as the broadest pos-sible engagement o Slovak businesses withinthe ramework o such measures.

Another area o activities is creating a mod-ern economic image o Slovakia abroad throughpresentational, expert and in ormation eventsthat aim at spreading goodwill or Slovakiaamong oreign businesses and experts.

The gas crisis o January 2009 hit Slovakia


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Slovak Economic Diplomacy

The course o the global fnancial crisis andthe subsequent economic recession alsomade the Foreign Ministry to among otherthings signifcantly change its priorities vis--viscurrent issues o economic diplomacy. Thanks toits consistent approach the Ministry was ableto exactly establish its real contribution to themeasures taken by the Government and was on

a regular basis providing the Government as wellas the supreme representatives with various in-ormation materials. The Ministry was, however,

also preparing events o its own aimed at sup-porting the economic interests o Slovakia.

An important place among the activities o theForeign Ministry connected with the economiccrisis belonged to the Ministrys own analysiso developments. The network o embassiesand permanent missions abroad was activelyinvolved as a whole in the process o evaluationo situation and trends emerging in connec-tion with the crisis. The Foreign Ministry wasthen able to prepare materials on cooperationwith EU member countries in remedying conse-quences o the economic crisis or an analysis o the measures taken by the EU and its member

countries in the feld o solving consequenceso the economic crisis on employment and sev-eral other reports as well. All activities, espe-cially preparation o positions to be presented inmultilateral ora in which Slovakia participatedin 2009 in or in which Slovakia was called on to

Certain project activities o the Foreign Min-istry were aimed at remedying consequenceso the economic crisis. Within the rameworko our cooperation with the Organisation orEconomic Co-operation and Development (theOECD) we provided fnancial support e.g. orpreparation o the Economic Analysis o Instru-ments to Overcome Consequences o the Finan-

cial Crisis in the Slovak Republic, a project spon-sored by the Ministry o Finance or CompetitivePolicy in a Period o Economic Crisis, a projectsponsored by the Antimonopoly Office.

Visible within the OECDSlovakias activities within the OECD were in2009 o special importance. The key activity wasthe February visit o the OECDs Secretary-Gen-eral Angel Guria to Slovakia. The Secretary-Gen-eral presented the Economic Survey o Slovakia,a report that is an important instrument orthe Government to identi y those areas need-ing to be targeted in the implementation o itseconomic policy. The avourable results o thesurvey only confrmed the generally positiveperception o Slovakia by the organisation.

Through its participation in the activities o theOECD Financial Markets Committee and in theactivities o the OECD Economic Outlook Com-mittee Slovakia also actively joined the processo seeking solutions to the present crisis situa-tion and the stabilisation o the economy. Thesame attention is also being paid to monitoringdevelopments in the labour markets in relationto the crisis and post-crisis developments as well

to monitoring measures taken by governmentsto improve the situation in labour markets andthe social situation o the population.

Through her membership in the InternationalEnergy Agency (OECD/IEA) Slovakia actively par-ticipated in analysing and creating a policy o

ffi

Snapshot o Ivan ramko,Governor o the National

Bank o Slovakia speakingat the Foreign Ministry


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.activities o the Ministry o Finance and thoseo the National Bank. The dynamism o develop-ments connected with the global fnancial cri-sis and the measures taken to overcome theconsequences o the crisis provided sufficientroom to ormulate our own position on issuessuch as agreement on joint representation o the Slovak Republic and the Czech Republic at

the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and theWorld Bank, general allocation o special draw-ing rights or granting a loan to the IMF aimedat strengthening the Funds own sources.

Within the UN Industrial Development Organ-isation (UNIDO) Slovakia supported preparationo projects aimed at eliminating the consequenc-es o ood crisis, poverty and hunger, protectiono the environment, creation o conditions orsustainable development and creation o jobs.

As the political dimension o business policyis ever more noticeable, the Foreign Ministryparticipates in those activities connected withsolutions to current issues o world businessand Slovak participation in it. Attention is frstand oremost paid to the manner in which thecommon business policy o the EU is imple-

mented, but also the operation o the WorldTrade Organisation (WTO). The multisectoralcharacter o business issues was also shownin the solution o several problems o bilateralbusiness relations with Ukraine brought aboutby the Foreign Ministry.

Cooperation with the BusinessSectorAn intensifcation o dialogue with the Slovakbusiness community and their interest associa-tions aimed at turning their expectations intoactual Foreign Ministry policies is an importantchallenge or the operations o this Ministry.Through active interaction the Foreign Ministry

drawing o any available development unds tosecure sustainable economic growth.

Many o these activities are not new or theForeign Ministry. Naming them appropriatelymeant, however, that these activities weregranted appropriate relevance and quality.

It is also in our interest to ocus, besides ontraditional partners, on investment capital

rom Asia and rom the nations o the PersianGul , which are, in 10 to 15 years time, expectedto have the highest volume o surplus capital.

The Ministry also endeavours to create roomor direct contacts between businesses in Slo-

vakia and our supreme representatives abroad.The frst contact exchange o business and in-vestment opportunities was organised duringthe meeting o Heads o Diplomatic Missionsheld between 30 June 2009 and 3 July 2009. TheHeads o Diplomatic Missions were in this wayprovided with an opportunity to respond directlyto requests and queries rom Slovak enterprise.The objective o the contact exchange was to

identi y new opportunities or urther expansiono existing markets by Slovak producers and serv-ice providers. The exchange was opened by theMinister, who said that upon his taking over asMinister he had declared the objective o strong-ly engaging the Ministry in the fght against the

The Foreign Ministry wasstrengthening the dialogueo government withenterprise and specializedeconomic organisations


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The year 2009, one in which we comme-morated the 20th anniversary o unda-mental political and social changes inCentral and Eastern Europe that became an im-pulse or the creation and development o theCentral European model o regional coopera-tion, has once again confrmed the growingimportance o the V4 brand name.

Slovakia and the V4

tant, in terms o in uence, were the meetingso prime ministers and individual members o governments, which adopted material deci-sions or uture pragmatic interdepartmentalcooperation amongst the V4 nations. In January2009 Bratislava hosted an extraordinary sum-mit o prime ministers o the V4 nations and thePresident o the European Commission J.M. Bar-

roso covering the gas crisis. The prime ministersat the same time participated in a celebrationo the introduction o the euro in Slovakia.

The Polish Chairmanship o the V4 was con-cluded in June 2009 by a summit o prime min-isters o the V4 nations held in Krakow-Wieliczkathat adopted a decision on renewal o the work-ing group o high representatives or energy se-curity and decided on the creation o a workinggroup o high representatives or the integrationo the Roma population. Both working groupshelp to fnd consistent and long-term solutionsto these two sensitive issues.

As regards new impulses or uture coopera-tion, a positive contribution was also made bya meeting o presidents o the V4 nations. Dur-ing the last summit o presidents held in Sopot,Poland, President Ivan Gaparovi presentedthe idea o promoting the Visegrad region asone o the new EU macroregions and proposedthe creation o an International Visegrad Prizeo Presidents to be awarded to citizens or to or-ganisations that have considerably contributedto strengthening the Visegrad identity.

Slovakia actively and constructively used thecoordination and consultation mechanisms o

the V4 and supported promoting common in-terests o the V4 nations within the EU. Initiatedby the V4 countries oreign ministers, there wasa continuation o the intensive diplomatic effortso the V4 in the area o support or the prospectso European and Euro-Atlantic integration o na-

The V4 means concrete projects and exchangeo young people, students and experts in thefeld o culture and arts, science and research,academic and scholarship exchanges and cross-border cooperation. Nowadays we are able toproudly state that a common Visegrad identity,

ollowing rom the closeness o our nations,common history and culture, and at the sametime strengthened by common membershipin the EU and NATO is being gradually created.Slovakia tried to strengthen the internal cohe-

sion o the V4 and its external and internal bal-ance, including presenting concrete inward out-comes i.e. ones towards the citizens o the V4nations. Regular meetings on the political andexpert level were continued. The most impor-

In September the Polish cityo Sopot hosted the summit

o the V4 Presidents, alsoattended by the Slovenian

President Danilo Trk

The June meeting o PrimeMinisters during the V4

summit in Wieliczka,Poland


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.

esses or building a market mechanism as wellas democratic mechanisms in society.

The mutual diplomatic and consular repre-sentation o the V4 nations represents theircommon interests, which has practical and pos-itive implications or their citizens. In May 2009a working group o the V4 oreign ministriescame into existence to speci y the idea urther,including the joint use o premises and build-ings o diplomatic or consular representations.

Slovak Chairmanship o theInternational Visegrad FundIn 2009 Slovakia was the chair o the Interna-tional Visegrad Fund (IVF). In this period theIVF intensifed its activities within the V4 and

List o Activities and Meetings o the V4 in 2009:8 January mini-summit o the V4 countries prime ministers and EC President J.M. Barroso held

in Bratislava on the gas crises1 March meeting o the V4 prime ministers and those o B3, Bulgaria and Romania on the

occasion o the extraordinary summit o the EU on the economic crisis in Brussels8-9 May meeting o the V4 countries ministers o justice in Wroclaw21 May meeting o the oreign ministers o the V4 countries and Sweden in Warsaw25-26 May meeting o the oreign ministers o the V4 countries and Japan on the occasion o

the meeting o oreign ministers o the ASEM countries held in Hanoi28-29 May meeting o the V4 countries ministers o culture in Warsaw2-3 June meeting o the V4 countries speakers o parliaments in Warsaw3 June summit o the V4 countries prime ministers in Krakow-Wieliczka24-25 June meeting o V4 countries deputy ministers o transport in Warsaw25 June meeting o the V4 countries ministers o health in Warsaw1-2 July meeting o the V4 countries regional development ministers and those o Bulgaria,

Romania and Slovenia in Sopot, Poland8-10 July meeting o the V4 countries ministers o the environment in Krakow

11-12 September summit o V4 countries presidents in Sopot, Poland6 October meeting o the oreign ministers o the V4 countries and those o Belgium, Spain andthe countries o the Western Balkans in Budapest

8 October meeting o the V4 countries ministers o de ence in Budapest29 October meeting o V4 countries prime ministers and those o Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania,

Romania and Slovenia prior to the session o the European Council

tion). Besides that 21 grants or artists rom V4countries within the ramework o the Viseg-rad Artist Residency Programme (VARP) and 8so-called strategic grants were approved. 153scholarships were also granted or students

rom outside the V4 to attend universities inV4 countries (39 o them were awarded orstudy in Slovakia), 51 scholarships or students

rom V4 countries to study within the V4 and16 scholarships or students rom V4 countries

to study outside the V4.Under the Slovak Chairmanship transparentrules o the Visegrad+ projects were elaboratedand approved. At the same time our Visegrad+projects were approved (two o them or Serbiaand another two or Belarus).

In January Bratislavahosted an extraordinarymeeting o the V4 primeministers with EC President

Meeting o ForeignMinisters o the V4countries and Swedenin Warsaw


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Good relations with all her neighboursstill remains Slovakias undoubted andpermanent priority in the feld o oreignpolicy relations. The year 2009 was characterizedby efforts to cooperate in an accommodating,mutually benefcial and comprehensive ashionin the feld o politics, the economy, internal a -

airs, culture, education, science, health, envi-

ronment, tourism, cooperation o non-govern-mental organizations as well as in many otherareas. The most important contribution was thestrengthening o interpersonal relations.

In 2009 there was, just as in previous years,a high dynamism o meetings o supreme rep-resentatives, who discussed current issues inthe area o urther development o bilateralrelations.

At present the creation and implementationo joint bilateral projects unded by the Euro-pean Regional Development Fund (ERDF) havebecome a priority o neighbourhood coopera-tion. Projects exceeding 50% o the fnancialmeans allocated or individual partnerships

rom the ERDF or the period 2007-2013 wereapproved in the case o all o Slovakias part-nerships (Slovakia the Czech Republic, Slo-vakia Poland, Slovakia Hungary, Slovakia Austria). The projects presented especiallytarget support or the social, cultural and eco-nomic development o regions, availability o cross-border territory and protection o theenvironment.

The Czech RepublicCooperation with the Czech Republic is stillcharacterized by relations that are above

Good Relations with Neighbours

standard. It is Slovakias closest partner. Weare pleased to note that the relation is natural,un orced and requires no useless administra-tion. The level o our relations was best provenby the immediate assistance provided by theCzech Republic to Slovakia during the energycrisis in January 2009 through historically thevery frst reverse motion o the gas pipeline

that sa eguarded the gas supply necessary orthe existence o Slovak citizens.Tradition o mutual frst and last visits paid

to the other closest neighbour was confrmedby President Ivan Gaparovi, who on 9 Febru-ary 2009 paid a arewell visit to the Czech Re-public at the end o his frst term and on 29-30June 2009 made his frst oreign trip in his sec-ond term to Brno and Prague.

In 2009 both countries commemorated his-toric milestones o their common existence.The most important historical event was the20th anniversary o the historic changes thatoccurred during the velvet revolution in 1989.These events were in Prague commemoratedby the Speaker o the National Council o theSlovak Republic, while in the territory o Slova-kia they were commemorated by the Speakero the First Chamber as well as the Speakero the Senate o the Parliament o the CzechRepublic together with their Slovak host.

The leader o the Velvet Revolution andormer President o the Czech and Slovak Fed-

eral Republic Vclav Havel was on this occasiongranted honorary citizenship o Bratislava.

Considerable and appreciable steps were

also taken in the area o maintaining the cul-tural and language closeness o the Slovak and


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.

Czech nations. Besides the existing regularguest per ormances by theatre companies orquality events organized by the Embassy o theSlovak Republic and the Slovak Cultural Centrein the Czech Republic, viewers paid considera-ble attention to joint projects o the Slovak andCzech television companies.

HungaryDevelopment o good neighbourhood rela-tions with Hungary ranks among the integralpriorities o the oreign policy o the SlovakRepublic. There were positive tendencies inmutual relations present within the European

and transatlantic agenda. Cooperation withinthe V4 Group chaired by Hungary in the sec-ond hal o 2009 was also effective. There werevery good developments in the feld o the twocountries regional and cross-border coopera-tion that resulted in many concrete projects on

history and approaches to the national minor-ity issue. The Hungarian side ailed to respondto objections by the Slovak Parliament to theinstitutionalization o the Forum o Hungar-ian Representatives o the Carpathian Basinin the Hungarian National Assembly. Slovak-Hungarian relations were also in uenced bythe adoption o the amendment to the Act onthe State Language. This legitimate step wasimmediately questioned in international oraby Hungary. The Slovak oreign service there-

ore patiently provided in ormation on the es-sence o the Act as well as on the purpose o the Acts adoption and did so not just in rela-

tion to Slovakias Hungarian partners withinthe ramework o bilateral dialogue, but alsocooperated intensively with the OSCEs HighCommissioner on National Minorities KnutVollebaek and with the international organisa-tions and their bodies (Council o Europe, Euro-

Foreign Minister o Hungary Pter Balzsduring a press con er-

With Minister o Foreign Affairs o theCzech Republic JanKohout

Current issues o bilateral re-lations were the main topico the meeting o primeministers o Slovakia andHungary, Robert Fico andGordon Bajnai, respectively,

held in Szechenyi, Hungary,on 10 September 2009


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AustriaCooperation with Austria is, in accordancewith the approach o the other V4 partners,traditionally widely developed and was in 2009being urther deepened.

Austrias undamentally rejectionist positionon the use o nuclear energy is connected tothe countrys critical view o the completion o

the 3rd

and 4th

blocks o the Mochovce NuclearPower Plant. Thanks to the open approach o the Slovak side as well as to constructive dis-cussion on a variety o issues and concerns o the partner, the requirements provided or ininternational agreements were success ullycomplied with. Thus adverse effects on the lev-el o mutual relations were also prevented.

Austria is also an important partner in thefeld o energy industry, especially in the contexto diversifcation o energy sources. In 2009 theministers o economy signed a memorandumo understanding and cooperation in this area.

An important moment is represented in theurther progress made in the development o

road and railway in rastructure in the borderregion, acilitating closer cooperation o neigh-bouring regions.

UkraineUkraine ranks among our priorities. A demo-cratic, politically stable and economically pros-perous Ukraine is in our interests. Besides thedimension obtaining in the act that we are twoneighbouring countries, Ukraines Euro-Atlanticintegration ambitions add one more signifcant

dimension to this relation. In 2009 Slovakia ac-tively joined the preparation and implementa-tion o the Eastern Partnership project. Slova-kias Embassy in Kiev acted in 2009 as the NATOContact Point Embassy in Ukraine (Slovakia wasagain appointed or the period 2009-2010).

Minister o Foreign AffairsMiroslav Lajk andAustrian Minister o

Foreign Affairs MichaelSpindelegger during theirMarch meeting in Vienna

With the Polish Prime Min-ister Donald Tusk during

negotiations in Bratislava

PolandThe intensity o contacts with Poland was re-in orced by a large number o visits o Slovakrepresentatives to Poland connected with par-ticipation in many events organized success-

ully by Poland as chair o the V4 Group in thefrst hal o 2009.

In September 2009 the very frst meeting inhistory o the presidencies o the parliamentso Slovakia and Poland was held in the HighTatras. The meeting adopted a joint declara-tion supporting urther all-round cooperation,especially cooperation o border regions.

In 2009 there were such ora o personalitiesrelated to the neighbouring country being cre-ated in both countries whose joint meetingsshould deepen dialogue and encourage urtheractivities to directly beneft both countries andtheir citizens.

Poland received Slovakias joining the Euro

Zone with appreciation as well as her han-dling o economic, technical and administra-tive steps. Slovakia did several presentations inPoland and confrmed her readiness to pass onexperiences o the process.

Sl kAid 2009


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.SlovakAid 2009

The Ministry o Foreign Affairs strategicobjective was in 2009 increasing the e -fciency o provision o development as-

sistance. TheMedium-Term Strategy or Official Development Assistance o the Slovak Republic

or the years 2009-2013was elaborated orthis purpose by the Ministry and the Strategywas approved by the Government on 4 March

2009. The document specifes the priorities,principles, concrete objectives and partnerso our development assistance, with empha-sis being put on the programme approach inproviding the priority countries (A ghanistan,Kenya and Serbia) with assistance. A greaterdegree o participation by the embassies o Slovakia through projects in programme andproject countries as well as in implementingthe so-called micro-programmes is also ex-pected under the document.

In 2009 the consolidation o our develop-ment assistance continued. A new director o the Slovak Agency or International Develop-ment Cooperation (SAIDC) was appointed,cooperation with other ministries in the sta-tistical reporting o development assistancewas improved, an in ormation and databasesystem o development assistance began toimprove and the monitoring and assessing o projects o development assistance o Slovakiawas started. The consolidation also continuedthrough improved communication among in-dividual government departments providingdevelopment assistance or fnancial meansreported as development assistance, and non-

governmental organisations and enterprise.In 2009 there were two sessions o therestored Coordination Committee o Devel-opment Assistance, which is a consultativebody to the Foreign Minister. This orum cov-ers undamental issues o the orientation and

ance A ghanistan, Kenya and Serbia, whilethere were sixteen project countries situated inthe Western Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia andA rica that received assistance. The agency in2009 announced nine public calls or projects.The SAIDC in 2010 contracted 45 developmentprojects, the value o which amounts to 6.37million euro with the total costs or develop-ment projects amounting to 7.1 million euro.In 2009 implementation o the micro-grantscheme introduced as a new instrument in

2008 continued. The projects were implement-ed by the fnal recipients through embassies in

Projects according to Individual Countries in 2009 (in %)

Vietnam

the UkraineSudanSerbia

Mongolia

Moldova

MacedoniaKyrgyzstanKenya

Georgia

Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina,

Macedonia

Bosnia and HerzegovinaBelarus

Afghanistan

4 % 9 %

2 %

9 %

2 %

7 %

11 %

5 %5 %2 %4 %

24 %

9 %

7 %

Number o Projects according to Individual Countries in 2009:

Country ProjectsA gh i t 4


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We Wish to Strengthen theEfficiency and Trustworthiness

How were the consequences o the global eco-

kia enjoys wide political support. Despite that thebudget approved or 2010 implies a reduction in as-sistance. The Foreign Ministry tries, however, to fnda solution within its own internal reserves. It is nec-

Belgrade (in the case o projects or local sub- jects in Serbia and Montenegro), in Sarajevo(projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina), in Nai-robi (projects in Kenya), in Minsk (projects inBelarus) and in Bucharest (projects in Moldo-va). Within the ramework o the scheme64 projects the value o which amounted to237,857 euro were contracted in 2009.

Cooperation with Other SubjectsIn 2009 cooperation with other donors contin-ued on a trilateral and multilateral level. Withinthe ramework o current division o work thereis cooperation with Luxembourg in the area o small grants in the Balkans. An important part-ner o the SAIDC is the Austrian DevelopmentAgency (ADA). In 2009 theMemorandum onCooperation was signed with the ADA in co-operation with which joint projects are being

prepared in Serbia and Ethiopia. Programmeand geographical closeness also enables closercooperation in the area o building capabilities.There were working meetings on different lev-els with other donors aimed at strengtheningcooperation in A ghanistan (Canada, the Neth-erlands) and at cooperation in the area o hu-manitarian assistance (Greece, Switzerland).

Also relevant is cooperation with the Swed-ish International Development CooperationAgency (SIDA) in Eastern Europe as well as inthe Western Balkans. The exchange o experi-ence with the Czech partners on all levels isin no way less signifcant and leads to closercooperation. As regards the regional levelregular V4 development agencies directorsmeetings have already become a traditionand last year such a meeting was held in Bra-tislava. Cooperation leads to coordination o activities and thus to increase in the qualityo programming o development assistanceand in its efficiency.

The Foreign Ministry continued its coopera-tion with international organisations, espe-cially with the UN Development Programme(UNDP) and the Bratislava UNDP Regional Cen-tre. In October 2009 the amendment to TrustFund o Slovakia and the UNDP was signed.The und is to fnance the Programme o Slo-vak Trust Fund 2008-2010: Spreading the Ex-periences o Slovakia rom Trans ormation andSupport or Human Resources Employed in O -fcial Development Assistance.

A ghanistan also receivesour assistance


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.

assistance. The absorptive capacity o the capabili-ties built is proved by the ever-increasing volumeo contracted fnancial means or bilateral projects.This does not, however, mean that there is no room

system. At the same time, new elements are beingintroduced into the system. In 2010 it is planned totest a demand driven systemas a model to the e -

ect that projects will be designed by the Agency

An initiative was also taken to commence co-operation with other agencies within the UN sys-tem active in the feld o development and hu-manitarian assistance (UNICEF, FAO, ILO, WFP). Public AwarenessAn important part o development assistancepolicy is making the public aware o its im-

plementation and obtaining a higher degreeo social support or the objectives set. Thisintention was ulflled by activities aimed atpriority development topics and selected tar-get groups. These activities took place throughspecifc projects and events o the Foreign Min-istry and the ODA such as seminars, con erenc-es, educational programmes and exhibitions.

On 28-29 January 2009 the First Annual Con-erenceSlovakia and Development Assistance:

Challenges and Experiences,which assessedthe provision o development assistance, washeld at the Foreign Ministry. TheSharing Tran- sition Experience international con erence wasorganized by the Foreign Ministry in coopera-tion with the UNDP Regional Centre on 25-26June 2009. Donors as well as assistance recipi-ents rom Belarus, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Serbia,Ukraine, Germany, Austria, Sweden and romthe new EU member countries participated inthe con erence.

Humanitarian AssistanceEight countries (A ghanistan, Ethiopia, Cam-bodia, Macedonia, Palestine, Tajikistan, Taiwan

and Ukraine) were provided with humanitarianassistance that amounted in total to 293,000euro. As regards urgent humanitarian assist-ance, the Foreign Ministry or example provid-ed the UNICEF with the fnancial means need-ed to purchase polio vaccines used to vaccinate250,000 children in A ghanistan. In November2009 the Foreign Ministry in cooperation withthe Ministry o Health and the Ministry o In-terior promptly provided 200,000 hygienicgauzes or the people o Ukraine stricken withthe u epidemic. The value o the supply in-cluding its transport amounted to 30,500 euro.The Foreign Minister subsequently allocated25,000 euro rom the budget or developmentassistance to purchase immunological drugs

or Ukraine.More at:www.slovakaid.sk (ODA SR)

In 2009 the frst AnnualCon erence: Slovakia andDevelopment Assistance

was held

Energy Security


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The year 2009 was frst marked by the im-pact o external actors present in the feldo Slovakias energy security. The principal

event o the year was undoubtedly the gas cri-sis o January, which ully revealed the securityrisks connected with a one-sided dependenceon a sole supplier and transport route o en-ergy carriers. It pointed out the seriousness o

non-military threats to the security o Slovakiaand the European political and economic area.Developments in the energy security agendarecently confrmed the importance o energysecuritys external, oreign policy dimension.

The Gas Crisis and SlovakiaJanuarys commercial and political dispute be-tween Russia and Ukraine resulted in an un-precedented eleven-day cutting off o naturalgas supplies to Slovakia and other Europeancountries. Slovakia had to announce a state o emergency and to urgently solve a situationin no way caused by it and to which it had be-come hostage. On the bilateral level as well ason the EU level Slovakia actively promoted thesearch or an early solution to the crisis situ-ation, at the same time underlining the unac-ceptability o the steps taken unilaterally byRussia and Ukraine. In seeking solutions to the

Energy Security

crisis situation Slovakia cooperated intensivelywith the Czech EU Presidency and the Euro-pean Commission. Appreciation is needed orthe collaboration o the players and partnersconcerned in the solution o the crisis.

Enhancing Energy SecurityFor Slovakia and the EU the crisis was an im-

portant cue to prioritize the area o energy se-curity. The act that the issue became a matterdiscussed on a regular basis by the EuropeanCouncil also proves its importance. Within the

ramework o the European Plan or EconomicRecovery Slovakia succeeded in putting throughan increased number o projects relevant romthe point o view o its energy security as well asan increased volume o fnancial means allocat-ed or individual projects. In 2009 Slovakia alsoparticipated in orming the rules o the Europe-an internal energy market and in implementingdirectives o the climate and energy package,continued to support development in the useo renewable sources o energy and or the sakeo international cooperation joined the Interna-tional Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

Signifcant successes also include detabui-zation o the nuclear energy industry and thepositive opinion o the European Commission

Our Energy Security is Satis actory

Is Slovakia, which in January experienced the cut-ting off o natural gas supplies, now better prepared

to ace such situations in the uture?Cutting off natural gas supplies needs to be seenin the context o the economic crisis that came intoexistence in consequence o the imbalance betweenavailable energy sources and economic activity thatresulted in the increase o energy prices in world mar-

Maro Kondrt,Chairman o theCommittee on EconomicPolicy o the National

system with that o Hungary and securing reversemotion o the Czech gas line are being prepared inthe medium-term prospect. These measures, togeth-er with the changes o legislation approved, create

a sufficient and systematic solution. What may beobjectively considered as a criterion is the act thatnone o the investors active in the Slovak Republicclosed his business due to temporary cutting off o natural gas supplies. Their presence is a signal thatour energy security is considered satis actory.


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.on the completion o the 3rd and 4th blocks o the Mochovce Nuclear Power Plant. The For-eign Ministry cooperated in this connectionby organising and securing public discussiono the cross-border in uences o Mochovcescompletion on the environment. Conditions

or building a new nuclear power plant in thevicinity o Jaslovsk Bohunice were created on

the occasion o the 4th

session o the EuropeanNuclear Forum.Within the ramework o discussions o the

3rd Plat orm o the Eastern Partnership Slo-vakia succeeded in pushing through that se-curity o supplies o energy raw materials bediscussed with the nations concerned withinthis new ormat. Slovakia also succeeded indrawing attention to the issues o energysecurity within the Organisation or Securityand Co-operation in Europe when in July 2009Bratislava hosted an OSCE con erence on theissue. The subsequent adoption o a minis-terial decision on energy security during theAthens session o the Organisation in whosepreparation Slovakia had also participatedcreated room or intensifcation o the OSCEengagement in the area.

In 2009 Slovakia ocused on renewal o mu-tual trust among partners in the chain o sup-

are crucial or a market serving the consumer. I weare, however, to witness a situation in which a dom-inant market participant dictates prices, then an in-crease in costs as a result o the dominant position

o just one market participant may be expected andit is the customer that will suffer in the end.Is Slovakia ready or a possible crisis in crude oil

supplies?Slovakia or MOL-Slovna t receives one hundred

per cent o its supplies rom Russia through the

es. A real competitive capacity o crude oil suppliesrom non-Russian sources may only be considered i

such supplies will have a market share on a regularand permanent basis. Adria is not able to provide

such a luxury and this is also proved by the act thatSlovna t does not use this crude oil pipeline.The interconnection o Bratislava with Schwe-

chat would also create an interconnection o theWestern European crude oil pipeline system andthe Druba crude oil pipeline and would thus result

pliers and consumers, cooperation o neigh-

Vyrocna Sprava 2009 En

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