State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (MZvez) SR Marek Eštok He negotiated on Monday (16 June) in Helsinki with the Finnish Minister for European Affairs Joakim Strand and advisor to the Finnish Prime Minister for European Union issues Tomas Tikkanen. The main topic was the deepening of the Slovak-Finnish political dialogue, the basic framework of which is membership in the European Union and the North Atlantic Alliance. TASR informed the Communication Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic.
“Together we want to strengthen contacts at political and expert levels. Mutual dialogue is a way to a deeper understanding between EU and NATO Member States. Understanding and respect for national specifics will help us to find common solutions that will make us stronger, ”said Eštok, adding that several current European topics – energy, competitiveness, future European Union budget, migration, European security, union expansion or development in Ukraine – discussed in Helsinki.
At the same time, in the field of energy, it confirmed the attitude of Slovakia, for which it is crucial, so that the European initiative repawereu does not endanger the energy security of the Slovak Republic. He also highlighted cooperation under the leadership of Finland in the field of strengthening the EU Single Marketwithin which the SR is part of the group of 17 Member States of the European Union.
Eštok recalled that investments from Finland are already working in the Slovak Republic and Slovakia is successfully working with the Finnish company They belong to the production of combat armored vehicles for the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic. According to him, he is also preparing cooperation in cultural diplomacy next year, as the city of Trenčín together with the Finnish city of Oulu will be in 2026 by European capital cities of culture.
