At a meeting with the Polish President and US President Barrack Obama, President Gašparovič discussed the situation in Ukraine and Europe’s energy security. At a round-table meeting of central and eastern European presidents with President Obama, Ivan Gašparovič emphasized that the Ukrainian crisis had changed the perception of security in Europe. “The situation in Ukraine forces us to pay more attention to our alliance with NATO and the European Union”, said Gašparovič. In his opinion, Ukraine needs to secure its internal stability which cannot be done from the outside, but only by Ukrainians themselves, through their elected representatives. “The Slovak Republic thus appreciates that Ukraine took the first step by having elected President Poroshenko,” Slovak President added.

According to our highest representative, “the path towards Ukraine’s stability lies in the reform of its self-administration”. The President of the Slovak Republic also noted that the Slovak Republic had promptly responded to help Ukraine by signing a memorandum on reverse gas deliveries from Slovakia to Ukraine.

The attending heads of states also agreed on the need to diversify energy supply routes and sources. Ivan Gašparovič said Slovakia supported diversification of energy sources and Poland’s efforts regarding import and processing of shale gas. He added, however, that nuclear energy remained a priority for Slovakia as a source of clean and environmentally-friendly energy.