SUMMARY-Tuesday-December 10, 2019 - 5.30 p.m.

BRATISLAVA - Members of the parliamentary defence and security committee have expressed their confidence in the procedures carried out by the National Crime Agency (NAKA) in pressing charges against Smer-SD chairman Robert Fico, committee head Anton Hrnko (Slovak National Party/SNS) stated following a session of the committee on Tuesday. BRATISLAVA - The Public Procurements Office (UVO) has ordered that the procedure used to procure 4x4 military vehicles should be halted, UVO spokesperson Janka Zvoncekova told TASR on Tuesday, adding that an appeal has been filed against its verdict. BRATISLAVA - Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini (Smer-SD) has expressed his sincere condolences to Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis following the tragic incident in the Czech Republic on Tuesday in which six people were killed and several others suffered severe injuries in a shooting spree at Ostrava Hospital, TASR learnt from the Slovak premier's social profile on the same day. BRATISLAVA - The Interior Ministry published the slates of political parties for the 2020 general election on Tuesday. The slates have been made available to the public on the Interior Ministry's website. BRATISLAVA - Volkswagen Slovakia (VW SK) is increasing the proportion of purely electric cars in its output, Oliver Grunberg, chairman of the board of directors at VW SK, told a news conference on Tuesday. BRATISLAVA - The Defence Ministry respects the decision of the Public Procurements Office (UVO) to halt the procedure used to procure 4x4 military vehicles, but it's appealed against it, ministry spokeswoman Danka Capakova told TASR on Tuesday. BRATISLAVA - Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini (Smer-SD) has taken note of Health Minister Andrea Kalavska's (a Smer-SD nominee) decision to resign, and he'll inform the president about whom he plans to replace her with soon, the premier's spokesperson Patricia Macikova stated for TASR on Tuesday. BRATISLAVA - Television channel JOJ reported on Tuesday that Martina Babacsova is set to become the new head of the Gorilla scandal investigation team. BRATISLAVA - President Zuzana Caputova on Tuesday sent a telegram of condolences to Czech President Milos Zeman in response to the shooting spree that took place in the Czech city of Ostrava earlier in the day, claiming the lives of six people. BRATISLAVA - House defence and security committee members Lubomir Galko (Independent) and Jaroslav Baska (Smer-SD) concurred that firefighters did their utmost to contain the situation following the gas explosion in an apartment block in Presov on Friday (December 6), although Galko also criticised a lack of firefighting equipment. zel