The President of the People’s Republic of China, Hu Jintao, arrived in Slovakia for the first ever official visit.

Slovak President Ivan Gašparovič said their talks covered a whole spectrum of issues ranging from “science, education, research and culture to economics and cooperation in terms of addressing the negative impacts of the global economic crisis”.

The Slovak President offered his Chinese counterpart specific areas of cooperation, such as in industries where Slovakia is ready to contribute its experience and know-how immediately. Further areas of cooperation include the energy and mining industries, as well as geology and mine safety technologies.

“We understand that the People’s Republic of China intends to increase its electricity output, and this is where we can offer cooperation in terms of nuclear supervision and technical assistance in nuclear waste storage. Given the favourable legislative environment, Slovakia is open to considering cooperation in investments. Cooperation is also a possibility in information technologies and telecom industries, the aviation, automotive, mechanical engineering or electrical engineering industries, as well as PPP projects concerning the construction of motorways, tunnels or rail routes,” Ivan Gašparovič said.

Furthermore, the talks tackled the specific issues of cooperation in transport, environment, agriculture and food sectors, hand in hand with “searching for possibilities in the use of water resources.”

The President assured Hu Jintao of Slovakia’s openness to tourists from China, with a particular focus on geothermal springs and spas.
The Chinese President praised the Slovak President’s contribution to the development of bilateral relations. China and Slovakia have traditionally been good friends he said, and then thanked for the humanitarian aid sent to help manage the consequences of last year’s earthquake in the Sichuan province. He said China was interested in the deepening of political relations, as well as economic cooperation and trade, with the key problem being an imbalance between imports and exports. Hu Jintao expressed support for Slovakia increasing its exports to China.

“The construction of infrastructure and development of forestry, agriculture, the environment and water management – these are the areas we can develop in the future,” the Chinese guest said. He allied himself to an opinion of the Slovak President that the international financial crisis can only be overcome by effective cooperation in the allaying of its impacts on the population. As he said, both sides should resist protectionism and support financial market reforms.

China is also keen to improve cooperation in the areas of education, culture and sport. “I highly appreciate that Slovakia did an excellent job as a non-permanent member with the UN Security Council between 2006-07,” Chinese President said, thanking Slovakia for supporting the Chinese candidacy for the UN Human Rights Council.

“Enlarging the scope of agreement and deepening our cooperation is our mutual objective, which is in line with the basic interests on both sides,” Chinese President Hu Jintao said.