President of Slovakia Ivan Gašparovič pays official visit to the White House – significant milestone in relations between Slovakia and America

President of Slovakia Ivan Gašparovič rates the official visit to the United States of America as very successful and considers it a significant milestone in relations between Slovakia and America. In the President’s opinion, the visit to the White House can be assessed as “extraordinary”. According to Ivan Gašparovič “it presents a certain satisfaction for citizens of the Slovak Republic that Slovakia is positively perceived by the USA and relations between our countries are good.” The President said that relations between Slovakia and America were currently at their best level ever since Slovakia became independent. At the same time Ivan Gašparovič thanked the President of the USA for the support provided for Slovakia when joining NATO, support which also opened the door to the European Union for Slovakia and that showed it to be a trustworthy partner for the whole world.

“Slovakia is an ally and friend of the United States. And as a President I admire President Gašparovič. He has good, strong opinions and I appreciate the values he represents.” – President of the United States George Bush said to the press shortly after the meeting with the Slovak President in the Oval Office of the White House.

The American President highlighted Slovakia’s activities carried out in NATO and its assistance in the fight against terrorism as well as the intention to increase the participation of Slovakia’s armed forces in operations in Afghanistan by 100%. “During my term of office I gladly supported Slovakia’s accession to NATO. I was convinced that Slovakia had been an excellent partner and NATO’s ally, of which the history is the proof.” – George Bush said during the press conference. “I would like to assure President Bush that Slovakia will continue to fulfil its obligations within NATO and our participation in Afghanistan will be in compliance with NATO’s plans.” – the Slovak President said.

During the meeting with his Slovak counterpart, the American President announced the intention of the USA to remove the visa requirement for Slovak nationals: - “Slovakia has made great progress in the area of the requirements for visa removal. I expect a positive decision for the people of your good country to be made in mid-November. Mr President, I congratulate you and your Minister of Foreign Affairs for the good work delivered in the process of solving this issue.” According to the Slovak President, removal of the visa regime with the USA is welcome news for Slovak nationals.

The global financial crisis, as well as possible actions that the United States and the European Union can take in order to solve the situation were also discussed by the Presidents in the White House. “At present, Slovakia is the largest producer of passenger cars per capita in the world and this industry may be affected by the reduced demand for cars” the Slovak President said. However, Ivan Gašparovič is convinced that Slovakia’s dynamic economy “will overcome the crisis without suffering any significant damage.”

After the visit to Washington, President Ivan Gašparovič travelled to Pittsburgh where he was received by the Mayor, Luke Ravenstahl. The top official of Pittsburgh said, “I was pleased to welcome the President of a country, expatriates of which have formed the strongest communities in Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania in all of the United States.” Ravenstahl thanked President Gašparovič for the support provided by Slovakia in the fight against terrorism, as well as for its participation in NATO’s peace missions and operations. “This attitude is perceived very positively by Americans”, the Mayor said.

“For Slovaks, Pittsburgh also has a historical value. The Pittsburgh Agreement, which was the first step towards the creation of a common state of Czechs and Slovaks – Czechoslovakia, was signed here,” Ivan Gašparovič said. According to Luke Ravenstahl, Pittsburgh benefitted immensely from the influx of thousands of Slovaks who started to arrive in the city a hundred years ago, and their work and culture had contributed greatly to its development.

It is estimated that 100 000 to 150 000 Slovak expatriates live in Pittsburgh. The first influx of Slovak immigrants to Pittsburgh dates from the late 1890’s.

The Slovak President also met with representatives of the US Steel company in their headquarters located in Pittsburgh. He was greeted by Vice-presidents of the company John Goodish, Dave Lohr and Cris Navetta who, in the past, have worked in US Steel in Košice.

“I am very glad that I came to US Steel as this company has strong ties to Slovakia”, the Slovak President said. Ivan Gašparovič emphasised that it was US Steel which contributed greatly to the development of the Slovak economy and of metallurgy in particular. The President thanked the American investor for the work performed during the construction of its metallurgical plant in Slovakia. Ivan Gašparovič pointed out: “Pittsburgh’s history is closely linked with Slovaks and I am very happy that through US Steel these close relations still exist even today.”

John Goodish highlighted the participation of Slovaks in the construction of a metallurgical plant in Pittsburgh “it was Slovaks together with other immigrants from Europe who built the US Steel plant in Pittsburgh.” Dave Lohr appreciated that the US Steel plant in Košice achieves good economic results.

The Slovak President also visited one of the oldest universities in the USA – the University of Pittsburgh which was founded in 1787. At the University, he expressed belief that Slovakia has a lot to offer the USA, both in the area of science and education. In the opinion of Ivan Gašparovič, dynamically developing Slovakia needs educated people. Therefore he decided to visit a University in the city where the strongest community of expatriates in the USA has formed. The Slovak delegation met with expatriates at receptions held in Pittsburgh and at the Slovak Embassy in the USA in Washington.