SUMMARY-Saturday-March 23, 2019 - 10 p.m.

BRATISLAVA - The co-governing Slovak National Party (SNS) on Saturday stated that it was disappointed to hear that Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini (Smer-SD) prefers an early general election in order to go ahead with the Defence Cooperation Agreement with the United States. BRATISLAVA - Zuzana Caputova and Maros Sefcovic, who are due to clash in a presidential election run-off in Slovakia in a week, in a debate on the public-service Radio and Television Slovakia (RTVS) on Saturday stated that they don't believe that the planned Defence Cooperation Agreement with the USA would jeopardise Slovakia's sovereignty. BRATISLAVA - Presidential election finalists Zuzana Caputova and Maros Sefcovic in a debate on RTVS on Saturday differed in opinions on whether elections of candidates for Constitutional Court judges should be public or not. BRATISLAVA - Presidential candidate Maros Sefcovic in a debate on RTVS on Saturday called on his rival Zuzana Caputova to provide a proper explanation of her practice as legal assistant at a law firm before she was officially allowed to became a legal professional on her own. BRATISLAVA - Presidential candidate Maros Sefcovic, who's advanced to the second round of the presidential election in Slovakia with a double-digit disadvantage to liberal lawyer Zuzana Caputova, will be received on Sunday by Czech President Milos Zeman at Lany Castle, a country house of Czech presidents. HOLMENKOLLEN - Slovak biathlete Anastasia Kuzmina, a three-time Olympic champion, topped the women's 10km pursuit race at the World Cup finals in Holmenkollen, Norway on Saturday. BRATISLAVA - If Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini (Smer-SD) believes that the government dispute over the planned Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the USA can only be resolved via an early general election, then this option must be discussed by the Coalition Council, co-governing Most-Hid stated on Saturday. ZLATE MORAVCE - Defence Minister Peter Gajdos (Slovak National Party/SNS) on Saturday attended a commemorative event in Zlate Moravce (Nitra region), pop. 12,000, to mark the 74th anniversary of the liberation of the town in WWII, stressing the need of organising such events with regard to what he bemoaned as rising intolerance and extremism. bub