At a bilateral meeting, Slovak President Ivan Gašparovič thanked his French guest for having accepted the invitation for an official visit to Slovakia. He noted that the last visit of a French president had taken place back at the time of the former Czechoslovakia. The current visit does not only mark the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the sovereign Slovak Republic but also the 95th anniversary of Czechoslovakia’s establishment “in which France played a very important role. A prominent Slovak political figure, Milan Rastislav Štefánik, and Slovak diplomat Štefan Osuský also played a very important role in those developments,” Ivan Gašparovič noted. Also, he particularly emphasised that Slovakia considered France one of its most significant strategic trade and investment partners.

The two officials confirmed their concurrent opinions concerning the promotion of nuclear energy. Slovakia deems nuclear energy a substantial component of its energy mix and plans to further strengthen its capacities in this area. “Good prospects of further intensification of Slovak-French cooperation can be seen in the Allegro research project on the construction of a prototype of a gas-cooled fast reactor,” Ivan Gašparovič added.Speaking about intensive cultural cooperation between the two countries, the Slovak President praised the teaching of French at Slovak grammar schools and universities.

Issues related to the further European enlargement, the Eastern Partnership initiative in particular, were also on the agenda. “The Eastern Partnership summit, to be held on 28-29 November 2013 in Vilnius, will decide not only about the future of the Eastern Partnership but also about the future of the EU’s eastern policy,” the Slovak head of state said. He noted that the signing of the association agreement would not automatically make Ukraine an EU member but Ukraine’s efforts to conform its legislation to EU standards deserved acknowledgement. French President Francois Hollande confirmed that Slovakia and France shared the same positions on the signing of the Association Agreement and the Agreement on Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area with Ukraine, and on the singing of similar free trade agreements with Moldova and Georgia, at the Vilnius summit. These agreements will create a legally binding framework to help Eastern European countries to converge to the European Union and its standards.

Francois Hollande noted the uniqueness and symbolism of his current visit to Slovakia, marking the milestones in the history of both the former Czechoslovakia and Slovakia, as well as the 10th anniversary of Slovakia’s entry to the European Union and the 5th anniversary of the adoption of the single European currency by Slovakia, adding that France had always been standing close to Slovakia on those momentous occasions. “I wish to appreciate the long path Slovakia has taken over the past 20 years - you now have a stable democracy, stable institutions, stable monetary system and dynamic economy,” President Hollande said. He especially acknowledged Slovakia’s activities within the EU amidst the problems faced across the euro area. “My visit has been an opportunity to sign the Action Plan for Strategic Partnership that covers all areas of our cooperation, economic and scientific in particular,” the French President said. He also appreciated French investors’ interest in doing business in Slovakia. “We have joint scientific teams, but we cooperate in the area of culture, too. Košice and Marseille are European Capitals of Culture for 2013, which also strengthens our relations,” he added. He further highlighted the fact that Slovakia would become an observer country in the International Organisation of La Francophonie. At the end of the meeting, he described his current visit as a visit that has “roots in our common history but also looks to the future because we have waited for 20 years for a presidential-level visit to take place.”

The Slovak President awarded Francois Hollande the Order of the White Double Cross of the First Class, the highest state decoration in Slovakia, and the French head of state awarded his Slovak host the highest state decoration of the French Republic - the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour