Good evening. Here is the Wednesday, March 27 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
NATO commander visits Slovakia
Twenty years ago, Slovakia joined NATO. Marking the anniversary, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe Christopher Cavoli visited the country at the invitation of the Chief of the General Staff of the Slovak Armed Forces, General Daniel Zmeko.
Cavoli praised Slovakia's contributions to NATO, its efforts to modernise its military, and its investments in the capabilities required to deter aggression and defend NATO territory.
"For the past 20 years, Slovakia has been a determined ally fulfilling its obligations and continues to do so in the changed security situation, when NATO's attention is focused on collective defence," said Cavoli.
He highlighted the active approach of Slovak soldiers, as well as the immediate reaction in strengthening the allied presence on the eastern flank of the Alliance.
Cavoli also visited the Lešť military training area in central Slovakia, meeting with Allied Soldiers from Slovakia, Czechia, Spain, Germany, Slovenia, and the United States.
MORE STORIES FROM THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR WEBSITE
- SLOVAK MATTERS: A flirtatious Easter of water and whipping.
- HOLIDAY: Shops to close during Easter, but there are exceptions. Also, winter time ends.
- BRATISLAVA: No tram in Petržalka this year, construction of extension has a new timeline.
- HISTORY: Monument to Krav Maga creator unveiled in Bratislava.
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FEATURE STORY FOR WEDNESDAY
Ukrainians are Slovakia's untapped potential
Ukrainians are becoming more and more involved in Slovakia's economy not just as entrepreneurs, but as employees too. They now make up the largest proportion of workers from abroad in the country.
This is seen as good for the economy because Slovak employers had a hard time finding workers for a long time, partly due to relatively low wages. In other words, it means that Ukrainians are do not taking jobs from Slovaks as has sometimes been claimed.
EXHIBITION FOR THE COMING WEEKS
The art that remains
On Thursday, a new exhibition will open in the Slovak National Gallery. Called Umenie, ktoré zostalo (The Art That Remains), the event showcases never before displayed and forgotten works from the gallery's collection. These were acquired from the legendary International Biennial of Young Artists DANUVIUS 68 event that that took place following the 1968 occupation of Czechoslovakia. For more information, click here.
IN OTHER NEWS
- The bear that on Sunday, March 17 ran through the centre of Liptovský Mikuláš, northern Slovakia, and injured five people, was shot dead on Tuesday evening, according to a social media post by Environment Minister Tomáš Taraba (SNS nom.).
- The last turbines at the Vojany power plant in Košice Region were shut down on Tuesday, bringing to an end the almost 60-year history of what was once the largest thermal power plant in the former Czechoslovakia. Production in Vojany was no longer economically efficient compared to other Slovak power plants.
- On Wednesday, the government approved a draft project ensuring rail passenger transport with Ukraine through the Pavlovo - Maťovské Vojkovce border crossing. As Ukraine uses broad-gauge tracks, passengers from Kyiv will travel to the village of Haniska near Košice, where buses will transport them to the nearby airport or railway station in the city. (TASR)
- On Wednesday, 8 Slovak MEPs sent a letter to the European Commission expressing concern the postponement of a decision on the prosecution of 31 suspects in the case of the death of Slovak national Jozef Chovanec by a Belgian court. "The investigation is in its sixth year, affecting not only Slovakia and Belgium, but also the European Union. We are aware of subsidiarity in matters of justice in national states, but at the same time we are convinced that European institutions must also care about justice in the EU," reads the letter. (TASR)
- Krisztián Forró, chair of the Hungarian minority political party Aliancia - Szövetség, will support Speaker of Parliament and Hlas chair Peter Pellegrini in the second round of the presidential election. He also cancelled a Thursday meeting with presidential hopeful and ex-foreign affairs minister Ivan Korčok. Forró failed to make it through the first round of the elections himself. Hungarian voters may be the deciding factor in the April 6 second round. (TASR)
- President Zuzana Čaputová granted a conditional pardon to a 31-year-old man convicted of possession of marijuana for personal consumption. He served more than 5 years of a 10-year sentence in a maximum security prison. In Slovakia, sentences for possession of small quantities of marijuana can be harsher than for murder or corruption. (TASR)
WEATHER FOR THURSDAY: Cloudy to overcast skies, with showers or rain in many places, snow at higher altitudes. Daily temperatures between 10 °C and 19 °C expected. Windy, with level 1 and level 2 wind warnings issued for southwestern and northern Slovakia and the latter's mountainous regions, see the map of the districts. (SHMÚ)
MARCH 28 NAME DAY IN SLOVAKIA: Soňa
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