MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Tuesday, 10 June 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Monday, 9 June): TASHKENT - Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev is ready to provide Slovak companies with land if they are interested in running business in this country on a 50/50 basis, so that it would be mutually beneficial for both sides, Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) stated at the Uzbek-Slovak business forum in Tashkent, adding that companies operating in Slovakia in the automotive industry can also find a huge space for cooperation here. "I'm very glad that a representative of Slovak company Matador was here and signed relevant agreements. Then there is the area of water management. Uzbekistan is interested in our services in terms of dam management, in terms of various forecasts of drought, storm water, perhaps even avalanches," the premier further stated. According to him, during the negotiations, significant attention was also paid to the energy sector. Fico said that Uzbekistan is planning to embark on the construction of a nuclear power plant. "And since we have five functional reactors in Slovakia and are finishing the sixth one, Slovakia with its expertise can be a welcome partner for Uzbekistan," he noted. BRATISLAVA - The Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party has called on opposition MPs from the Christian Democrats (KDH) and the 'Slovakia', For the People and Christian Union (KU) caucuses to reject cooperation with Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) by supporting the government's amendment to the Slovak Constitution. SaS leader Branislav Groehling told a news conference on Monday that the amendment will harm Slovakia by prioritising "Slovakia's identity over European Union rights". He asked opposition MPs not to succumb to Fico's bait. "This change in the Constitution won't help anyone anywhere in Slovakia. Fico 'smuggled' a provision into this amendment that prioritises Slovakia's national identity over EU rights. You could squeeze absolutely anything into this provision, you could squeeze an amendment to the Penal Code in there that violated EU regulations, even though Slovakia has approved those EU regulations," stated Groehling. He claims that Slovakia's gradual withdrawal from the EU can also be discerned from the provision's formulation. "The argument will be that Slovak legislation cannot respect the European kind," he added. BRATISLAVA - School-leaving exams in mathematics will be mandatory in Slovakia as of the 2030/2031 school year, Education Minister Tomas Drucker (Voice-SD) announced at a news conference on Monday. The change will therefore apply to students who start studying in the first grade of secondary school on September 1, 2027. The basic level of the mathematics exam should be mandatory for students of grammar schools, secondary technical schools and many vocational secondary schools. According to Drucker, school-leaving exams in mathematics at grammar schools should be two-level. A lower (basic) level should apply to third graders. Only selected students would undertake a higher level in the final grade, i.e. those who want to continue their studies at technical universities, explained Drucker, adding that mandatory school-leaving exams in mathematics have also been introduced by Poland, Hungary, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France, Slovenia and Croatia. BRATISLAVA - The expert public is demanding an investigation into the transport of the bust of Cecilia Gonzaga, a collection object of the Slovak National Museum (SNM) - Spis Museum in Levoca (Presov region), to the premises of the Interior Ministry in the municipality of Topolcianky (Nitra region), also requesting the return of the bust to the museum in Levoca. "The law on museums and galleries states that museums and galleries are responsible for the protection and security of collection objects. The Culture Ministry, as the founder, is obliged to provide the finances and space so that museums and galleries can carry out this expert protection and ensure that collection objects are secure," cultural anthropologist Ivana Rumanova told a press briefing on Monday, pointing out that the law stipulates the only possible case in which this power can be taken over by the Culture Ministry, which is the declaration of an emergency or crisis, which could include, for example, a natural disaster, a state of war or a fire. "These conditions haven't been met, certainly not by the alarm that was triggered at the end of February, as the ministry claims," she added. BRATISLAVA - Slovakia supports the European Commission's (EC) agenda to create an EU Savings and Investments Union, a historic opportunity to strengthen Europe's economic resilience, boost its competitiveness and secure a prosperous future, Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenicky (Smer-SD) stated on Monday at a conference on this issue organised in Bratislava by the Slovakia's central bank (NBS), the Finance Ministry and a European think-tank called Bruegel. Kamenicky pointed out that the global economy is in uncertain times, facing several challenges related to trade wars and competitiveness, among others. "In this respect, the Savings and Investments Union is one of the important examples of an effective common response by the European Union to make the EU stronger and more competitive," he emphasised, pointing out that, according to a 2024 analysis by the Bruegel Institute, Europe faces a significant investment gap, estimated at €800 billion per year. BRATISLAVA - Slovakia exported goods worth €9 billion in April 2025, down 0.3 percent year-on-year (y-o-y), while imports grew by 4.2 percent to reach approximately €9 billion as well, according to preliminary figures released by the Statistics Office on Monday. Slovakia thus showed a trade-balance deficit of a mere €273,000 in April, which is the smallest difference between exports and imports in its history. Exports were dragged down chiefly by a 2-percent drop in the category of machinery and transport equipment, including cars. This drop was primarily offset by a 19-percent growth in the category of miscellaneous industrial products. ko