President Pays Tribute to M.R. Stefanik at Campoformido Airport in Italy

Rome, May 4 (TASR) - President Peter Pellegrini on Sunday visited the Campoformido airport in Italy, from where General Milan Rastislav Stefanik took off on his last flight to his homeland on May 4, 1919, describing Stefanik as a passionate Slovak and a convinced European who fought for the ideals of freedom and peace, TASR was told by the President Office's communications department on the same day. Pellegrini also highlighted the bilateral relations between Slovakia and Italy. This was the first ever visit of a Slovak President to Campoformido. On the 106th anniversary of Stefanik's tragic death, Pellegrini stressed his contribution to the setting up of Czechoslovakia, his devotion to his homeland and his belief in the importance of cooperation between nations. "It was General Stefanik who persistently and with determination founded the Czechoslovak Legions here in Italy. And it was the brave legionaries who convinced world leaders that Czechoslovakia belongs on the new map of Europe," said the Slovak president. In his address, the head of state also raised the question of how events in Slovakia would have developed if Stefanik had remained alive. According to him, people must respect his legacy in order to keep Europe in a good state for future generations. The president also thanked the representatives of the town who commemorate Stefanik's memory every year. "The life and work of General Stefanik will always remain a strong historical thread linking Italy and Slovakia. I greatly value the friendship between our nations, strengthened also by the tragic moment 106 years ago. Campoformido will always remain a place that will unite our two nations. And our nations symbolically contribute to the unity of the whole of Europe," stated Pellegrini. Stefanik, one of co-founders of Czechoslovakia in 1918 and its first and last minister of war, was killed with his entire crew when his Caproni Ca.33 biplane crashed near Ivanka pri Dunaji (Bratislava region) on May 4, 1919. am