President Ivan Gašparovič Receives Deputy Prime Minister of the Chinese Government

President of the Slovak Republic Ivan Gašparovič received the Deputy Prime Minister of the Government of the People’s Republic of China, Mr Hui Liangyu.

At a meeting with the Slovak head of state, Mr Hui Liangyu said he was pleased to have the opportunity to visit Slovakia. He conveyed the greetings from Chinese President Hu Jintao to his Slovak counterpart. The Chinese Deputy Prime Minister appreciated recent improvements in the relationships between the two countries at the meeting. He also thanked for the support the Slovak Republic had provided to China in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake in 2008. In addition, Mr Hui Liangyu appreciated achievements the Slovak Republic had made over the twenty years of being a sovereign country.

“Both countries seek improvements in bilateral relations. Our trade exchange and cooperation have significantly improved in the recent years. Not only in terms of trade and economy, but also in science, research, education and cultural cooperation,” Ivan Gašparovič noted. He added that the bilateral economic exchanges between the two countries amounted to USD 6 billion. Our relationships have very good prospects, and we should do everything in order to extend this cooperation to also include cultural and personal contacts so that people of our countries could get to know each other better.

President Ivan Gašparovič emphasised that the most effective way to combat the ongoing economic crisis was through cooperation. On that account, he said he believed that the Slovak Republic and the People’s Republic of China should try and seek forms of closer economic cooperation. According to the President, closer cooperation between Slovak self-governing regions and Chinese provincial authorities could be a good example in this respect.

During the talks with the Chinese Deputy Prime Minister, Ivan Gašparovič also drew attention to possible cooperation with the Slovak Academy of Sciences and the Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra which had successfully developed a project to grow wheat cultivated specifically for sub-tropical zones.

According to Ivan Gašparovič, the Slovak Republic is also an interesting destination in terms of possible investments in the wellness and spa tourism industry as Slovakia is abundant in mineral and thermal springs and can offer a large number of healing spas.