MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Sunday, 22 June 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Saturday, 21 June): BRATISLAVA - Speaking on STVR's politics programme 'Sobotne dialogy' (Saturday Dialogues), Defence Minister Robert Kalinak (Smer-SD) said that he has no problem with setting up an expert commission to check military purchases at his ministry, as requested by the opposition. Opposition MP Juraj Krupa (Freedom and Solidarity/SaS), also on the show, reiterated that the opposition views these purchases as non-transparent. "I have no problem with that. There are several people in the opposition I regularly communicate with, including Mr. Krupa, or Tomas Valasek (Progressive Slovakia/PS)," said Kalinak. Concerning Slovak President Peter Pellegrini's planned visit to Ukraine, Kalinak hopes that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will use the opportunity "to apologise to Slovakia for harming its interests, while Slovakia is helping it". Meanwhile, Krupa is curious how Pellegrini will manage to improve Slovakia's image in Ukraine, which he believes the country has created after the current coalition came to power. POPRAD - In a speech he delivered at the working congress held by the Voice-SD party in Poprad (Presov region) on Saturday, its leader and Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok described the past 12 months as a year full of challenges, but also of courage and responsibility. At the same time, Sutaj Estok warned against the continued polarisation of society, extreme political positions and populist efforts by the opposition to question the democratic order. The Voice-SD leader recalled political opponents taking offence at each other and the loss of boundaries of decency that accompanied the political scene in Slovakia for many months after the assassination attempt on the premier. At the same time, he rejected ideological wars and pointed to the need for real solutions for people. The congress also elected presidium members whose mandates have expired. These were: Branislav Becik, Jan Blchac, Karol Janas, Peter Kalivoda, Peter Kmec, Lubica Lassakova, Peter Nahlik, Robert Puci, Dusan Tittel and Peter Ziga. Branislav Ondrus and Lukas Pellegrini became new presidium members. Jan Ferencak wasn't nominated, nor was ex-minister of health Zuzana Dolinkova. NITRA - Coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) leader and House Vice-chair Andrej Danko believes that President Peter Pellegrini will stand against increase in defence spending at the upcoming NATO summit in the Hague, Danko himself told a news conference following the congress held by the party at the Agrokomplex exhibition centre in Nitra on Saturday. At the same time, Danko believes that Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) will never more raise his hand for anti-Russian sanctions. "I believe that the president will maintain his character and will stand against the increase in [the defence] spending side by side with Spain and that Robert Fico will also maintain his character and raises his hand for anti-Russian sanctions never again," stressed Danko. Concerning considerations about Slovakia's potential neutrality, he called on the premier to start taking steps to ensure that "Slovakia doesn't have to finance mad armaments in NATO". BRATISLAVA - The Council of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) has supported the constitutional changes in a resolution, KDH leader Milan Majersky told journalists following the KDH Council meeting in Bratislava on Saturday, calling on his party MPs to back the draft in its third reading. According to Majersky, the resolution was preceded by a strong debate and exchange of opinions. "We've adopted a strong resolution in which the KDH Council approves the draft amendment to the Constitution, which took over essential parts from the original draft amendment sponsored by KDH. In the second part of the resolution, the KDH Council is asking all MPs elected for KDH to back the draft amendment to the Constitution in its third reading, as it promotes the party's value agenda and is in the best interest of Slovakia and the European Union," stated Majersky. ko