SUMMARY - Wednesday, May 21, 2025 - 10 p.m.

Bratislava/Brussels, 21 May (TASR) - The foreign ministers of EU-member states agreed at Tuesday's (May 20) summit in Brussels to support peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, said Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) after the session. https://etasr.sk/article/22092987 Bratilsava, May 21 (TASR) - Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) will take people's saved money from the second pension pillar to avoid having to consolidate, said opposition MPs Igor Matovic and Julius Jakab (both from Slovakia-For the People-KU alliance) at a press conference on Wednesday. https://etasr.sk/article/22093215 Bratislava, 21 May (TASR) - Since taking office in 2023, the current government has stabilised the devastated public finances inherited from previous administrations, which were in the worst condition in the entire European Union, and while achieving a balanced budget is currently impossible, it aims to hand them over to its successor in a "normal" state, said Premier Robert Fico on Wednesday after a meeting with Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenicky (both Smer-SD). https://etasr.sk/article/22093713 Bratislava, 21 May (TASR) - The Interior Ministry has rejected the prosecutor's appeal in the case concerning alleged interference in the presidential election campaign by Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD), TASR has learnt from ministry's spokesperson Matej Neumann. https://etasr.sk/article/22093857 Bratislava, 21 May (TASR) - Slovakia has one of the lowest economic growth rates in the surrounding countries, its economy is practically stagnating, inflation is among the highest in the eurozone, and public debt is not decreasing, stated opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) leader Michal Simecka in response to a press conference on Wednesday held by Premier Robert Fico and Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenicky (both Smer-SD) regarding the state of public finances. https://etasr.sk/article/22093982 Bratislava, 21 May (TASR) - The biggest challenge for the Finance Ministry in the near future is preparing next year's budget, but the department is also working on a QR payment project, which could begin trial operations in November this year, and e-invoices for entrepreneurs, which will be linked online to the tax authority, stated Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenicky after Wednesday's meeting with Prime Minister Robert Fico (both Smer-SD). https://etasr.sk/article/22094233 Bratislava, 21 May (TASR) - The coalition Voice-SD party has prepared a "specific proposal" for changing the financing of political parties, Interior Minister and Voice-SD leader Matus Sutaj Estok stated on social media on Wednesday, adding that the number of MPs in Slovak Parliament could also be reconsidered as part of cost-saving measures, a topic also addressed by Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) on the same day. https://etasr.sk/article/22094304 Bratislava/Brussels, 21 May (TASR) - EU foreign ministers attended the third EU-African Union (AU) ministerial meeting in Brussels on Wednesday, with Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar highlighting the need for closer cooperation with African countries in areas such as peace initiatives, security, multilateralism, and migration, TASR has learnt from the Slovak ministry's communications department. https://etasr.sk/article/22094514 NOTICE: If you click on the link or copy it into the search window, the browser will display the full text of the message in the new e-TASR client zone. If you have any questions, please contact obchod@tasr.sk. lin