MFA Blanar Takes over S3 Presidency Relay Baton from Czech Minister Lipavsky

Brussels, 23 June (TASR) - Slovakia will chair the Austerlitz Format (S3: Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia) between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026, Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) has stated, the Foreign Ministry's communications department told TASR on Monday, adding that Slovakia's priorities will be energy security, cooperation in European affairs and EU enlargement to the Western Balkan countries, as well as the development of transport infrastructure, digital transformation and development cooperation. Blanar took over the rotating presidency from the Czech Republic in the form of a traditional relay baton at a joint meeting with his Czech counterpart Jan Lipavsky and Austrian Minister Beata Meinl-Reisinger on the sidelines of the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels. Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Austria have expressed their interest in continuing the trilateral political dialogue with a view to developing specific cooperation in this regional grouping. Blanar said this format has played an important role in Central European cooperation for ten years. "Our partnership is based on geographical proximity and strong historical, economic and people-to-people ties," emphasised Blanar, who also presented the priorities of the Slovak presidency in S3 to his Czech and Austrian counterparts. am/mcs