Slovak President Meets German Minister of Foreign Affairs

President of the Slovak Republic Ivan Gašparovič received Guido Westerwelle, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, in the Presidential Palace in Bratislava.

President Gašparovič was pleased to note that relations between Slovakia and Germany were very good. “Your visit, Mr Minister, is considered to be an important part of our political dialogue,” Gašparovič said at the beginning of their meeting. The head of state stressed that the planned official visit of German President Christian Wulff in Slovakia would come as a confirmation of our excellent bilateral relations. Westerwelle reiterated that his present visit to Slovakia was already the third one during his tenure as Minister, thus demonstrating the quality of German-Slovak relations.

“I am pleased to note that Germany is our most important economic partner,” Gašparovič added. During the talks with Westerwelle, he said that Germany, with its 15 percent share, was Slovakia’s second largest foreign investor. As at 31 December 2009, the value of equity and reinvested profit of German companies in Slovakia stood at EUR 4.752 billion. In Slovakia there are more than 450 firms backed by German capital, enjoying an annual turnover of EUR 15 billion and employing 90,000 people. Over the recent years, German investments have predominantly focused on automotive, electrical and electronic engineering, mechanical engineering, as well as the energy industry and the financial sector. The most recent investment projects involve, in particular, the significant expansion of the Deutsche Telekom company which plans to build its accounting centre in Slovakia and create 500 new jobs. Another positive aspect highlighted by Ivan Gašparovič was the expansion of car production in the Volkswagen plant in Bratislava which expects to launch new models in the “new small family” category and offer 1,500 new job opportunities.

President appreciated the fact that Germany’s Foreign Affairs Minister had also visited a German school in Bratislava to attend a ceremony marking the start of the new school year. Gašparovič told his guest of his good relations with the representatives of the German minority in Slovakia. “The German minority in Slovakia represents a kind of a bond connecting our nations, but – historically – this was not always that easy,” German Minister said.

Both representatives also discussed the most recent developments in the euro area. German Minister considers the speculations on the “northern and southern” euro area to be dangerous. In his opinion, it is necessary to do everything to rescue the euro area. He said the Bundestag would be ratifying the documents concerning the expansion of the EFSF facility at the end of September and he is convinced that a positive decision of the German lawmakers would inspire the Slovak Parliament.

Gašparovič said the stability of the euro area was crucial for the Slovak economy as it is closely interconnected with that of Germany.
“If members of the euro area fail to strictly abide by the criteria of their budgets, the future of the euro currency could be at stake,” he told Westerwelle. Gašparovič said the debt crisis, which did not originate as late as in 2008, opened up two ways of looking at the economy – in political and economic terms. Therefore he believes the EU institutions must take on a strong supervisory function. In his opinion, a number of European countries had been neglecting the Maastricht criteria and the Lisbon Treaty. Gašparovič assured his guest that he would do his best to persuade the ruling coalition parties that the Parliament should make a responsible decision concerning the expansion of the EFSF facility. During their discussion, both representatives also tackled the issue of Balkan countries integration in the EU. Westerwelle said that “for us, all countries of the Western Balkans are given clear prospects of joining the EU”.