SUMMARY - Thursday, 4 December 2025 - 1 p.m.

Vatican, 4 December (TASR-correspondent) - President Peter Pellegrini invited Pope Leo XIV to visit Slovakia during his private audience in the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican on Thursday, the President's Office informed TASR on the same day. https://etasr.sk/article/22722069 Brussels, 4 December (TASR) - Slovak Foreign Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar attended the NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on Wednesday (3 December) and stated that the allies followed up on the conclusions of the NATO summit in The Hague, where member states agreed to increase defence spending to as much as 5 percent of GDP. https://etasr.sk/article/22722072 Bratislava, 4 December (TASR) - Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD) on Thursday presented in Parliament the draft bill on the Crime Victim and Whistleblowers Protection Office, rejecting claims that this is an act of revenge while stating that revenge was taking place in the period between 2020 to 2023, TASR reported on the same day. https://etasr.sk/article/22721918 Zilina, 4 December (TASR) - The local authorities in Zilina declared an emergency situation due to the leak of an unknown substance into the air in the city centre on Thursday morning, TASR has learnt from an announcement posted on social networks. https://etasr.sk/article/22721709 Brussels, 4 December (TASR) - Foreign Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar held a bilateral meeting with US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau on the sidelines of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels on Wednesday (3 December), confirming Slovakia's interest in strengthening the transatlantic partnership and developing cooperation in the areas of trade, energy, defence, as well as support for international security, TASR has learnt from the ministry's press department. https://etasr.sk/article/22721680 Bratislava, 4 December (TASR) - Retail revenues in Slovakia in fixed prices increased by 0.6 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) in October, the Statistics Office reported on Thursday, adding that higher revenues than a year ago, adjusted for inflation, were seen in the sector for the fourth time since the beginning of the year. https://etasr.sk/article/22721594 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. jrg