Slovakia wants to intensify mutual trade and investments with countries in the Indo-Pacific region, declared the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, Juraj Blanár, who took part in the meeting of ministers of the EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Brunei. In addition to the session, he led a series of bilateral negotiations and held the first-ever ministerial-level meeting with his departmental counterpart from Timor-Leste. TASR was informed about this by the communication department of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (MFA) of the Slovak Republic.
- Slovakia plans to intensify trade and investments with the countries of the Indo-Pacific region.
- Juraj Blanár emphasizes Slovakia’s interest in attracting investments from dynamic Southeast Asia.
- Slovakia wants to strengthen political dialogue in Asia and gain support for membership in the Security Council.
“We want to be an active and reliable partner in Southeast Asia and the Indo-Pacific. We are interested in using the existing potential for entrepreneurs, but also in obtaining investments from this area, which records permanent economic growth and a significant part of the world’s GDP is produced here,” said Blanár.
The growing importance of Southeast Asia
According to him, ASEAN countries represent one of the most dynamically developing regions in the world with more than 680 million inhabitants and a growing economic potential that offers significant opportunities for trade, investment and technological exchange.
Slovakia will also focus on strengthening the political dialogue with the countries of Southeast Asia in order to gain support for joining the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) and candidacy for non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council. According to Blanár, joining the TAC would strengthen the Slovak political engagement in Asia.
Bilateral negotiations in Brunei
As part of the work program, Blanár met with the foreign ministers of Brunei, the Philippines, Laos, East Timor and Singapore.
They discussed strengthening mutual economic cooperation with the head of Brunei diplomacy, Erywan Yusof. Both drew attention to the negative impact of the conflict in the Middle East on the economies of their countries.
Cooperation with Singapore and the Philippines
Blanár led the discussion on investments and trade exchange with an emphasis on innovative and technological sectors with his Singaporean departmental colleague Vivian Balakrishnan. He noted that Singapore is among the most advanced economies in the world and represents an important trade and financial center of the region, which makes it a promising partner for the development of cooperation.
At the meeting with the head of Philippine diplomacy, Theresa Lazarová, both sides confirmed their interest in developing bilateral relations through regular political dialogue, consultations and business missions, which will enable the planned opening of the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Manila, Philippines. On this occasion, Lazarová invited Blanár for an official visit to the Philippines.
Laos and East Timor as new partners
The Slovak minister also supported the quick completion of the negotiations on the free trade agreement. According to him, Slovakia welcomes the diversification of the EU’s trade and economic cooperation with the Philippines, including the ASEAN grouping as a whole.
At the first meeting of the heads of diplomacy of Slovakia and Laos after almost 10 years, Ministers Blanár and Thongsavanh Phomvihane discussed current foreign policy topics and the intensification of mutual dialogue and trade, especially in the areas of hydropower, digitization and tourism.
Blanár used the first-ever ministerial-level meeting with East Timor’s departmental partner Bendito Freitas to open a political dialogue and start building relations in the business and economic area. At the same time, both emphasized the potential of cooperation at the multilateral level. In 2025, East Timor became the newest, 11th member of the ASEAN grouping.
“The center of gravity of global economic development is shifting to the region of Southeast Asia. Slovakia wants to be active within national interests as well as an EU member state. Our partners from ASEAN also see us as an imaginary gateway to the Union,” concluded Blanár.
