MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Sunday, 15 March 2026 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Saturday, 14 March): OBYCE - Andrej Danko will be the chairman of the Slovak National Party (SNS) for the next four years, with delegates at the 31st working congress in Obyce in the district of Zlate Moravce (Nitra region) re-electing him for the post on Saturday. "Today, I once again accepted the challenge to offer the voters of Slovakia an alternative not only in national, but also in Christian and social policy," stated Danko. Danko stressed that SNS wants to offer real solutions to its voters in the upcoming period. "I am saying it as we feel that Slovakia is stagnating, that two and a half years of government under the leadership of Robert Fico (Smer-SD) are a repetition of the phrase: 'One thing is said, while something else is done'. Today we see the premier dealing solely with cooperating defendants every Sunday. We as a government are losing, while the [far-right] Republic party is gaining in the polls. I presented a fundamental point at the congress today: we want to be an alternative for the disappointed voters of this coalition, particularly those of Smer-SD and Voice-SD," stated Danko. BRATISLAVA - Opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party leader Michal Simecka has called on coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) chairman Andrej Danko to quit the governing coalition, which he said is harming Slovakia. Simecka responded in this way to the statements made by Danko following the SNS's working congress in Obyce (Nitra region) on Saturday. "If the chairman of one of the coalition parties adopts the positions and criticism of the opposition, then for Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) it's a throw-in-the-towel moment. Andrej Danko only said what everyone can see: that Robert Fico no longer cares about governing and the well-being of citizens, he is only concerned about cooperating defendants and Tibor Gaspar's case," stated Simecka. BRATISLAVA - Speaking on STVR's politics programme 'Sobotne dialogy' (Saturday Dialogues), Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD) said that he doesn't understand why Slovakia is making its support for extending the sanctions against Russia conditional on removing two Russian businessmen from the EU sanctions list. "I didn't get it why we made the blocking of anti-Russian sanctions conditional on removing two wealthy Russian businessmen from the EU sanction lists. We'll definitely want an explanation from Foreign Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD), since we don't understand this. We believe that national interests of Slovakia should come first. If blocking the sanctions helps the Slovak economy, let the sanctions continue, but I have the feeling it is quite the opposite," stated Sutaj Estok. Opposition Christian Democrats (KDH) leader and MP Milan Majersky, also on the show, criticised the government's stance on this matter. "We once made a commitment that we want to belong to the European Union and NATO. This is our economic security, this is our security in the face of any threat. And suddenly we are turning, both in words and in deeds, towards Moscow. KDH will never agree to this, and these sanctions must definitely remain in place. This is a long-term security interest of our citizens," he said. CORTINA D'AMPEZZO - Slovak para alpine skier Alexandra Rexova gained another bronze medal at the 2026 Winter Paralympics on Saturday. In her final appearance on the slope in Italy's Tofana, she secured her third medal in the slalom for visually impaired women. The 20-years-old Slovak athlete competed in five disciplines at the 2026 Winter Paralympics in Italy, winning bronze medals in the downhill and super-G in addition to the slalom. She ended fourth in both the super combined and the giant slalom. ko