MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Sunday, 17 May 2026 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Saturday, 16 May): JABLONOV NAD TURNOU - After strenuous and gradual work, a locomotive that had been left stranded in a ravine near the village of Jablonov nad Turnnou following a train collision last October has finally been pulled out, the Kosice regional police posted on social media on Saturday. "Work at the site, however, continues. Further steps related to securing the area, moving the wreckage, and clearing up the aftermath of the accident are underway. Kosice police officers are on site and, as needed, are maintaining public order as well as ensuring the safe movement of equipment in the area," stated the Kosice police, noting that this is a technically demanding operation that requires time, coordination, and the utmost caution. KOSICE - Igor Simko, a current MP and the government proxy for the elimination of regional disparities and the recovery plan for eastern Slovakia, will run for the post of Kosice region chair in the autumn elections on behalf of the governing Voice-SD party, Interior Minister and Voice-SD leader Matus Sutaj Estok told a press conference on Saturday. "I'm convinced that in the coming years, this very part of Slovakia - Kosice region, eastern Slovakia - could be one of the greatest success stories of development of our entire country. Kosice region has the potential to surpass even Bratislava region in many areas. I'm not saying this just because we're close to the border, which will be even more important in the future than it is today, but because Kosice is at the crossroads of routes leading in all directions. There's strategic space here, people, tradition, and all of this translates into enormous potential for the region's development," said Sutaj Estok, emphasising that Kosice region needs leadership based on cooperation, not on conflicts and political disputes. Simko justified his running by citing the need to bring specific results to the region's administration, better cooperation with the state, and solutions that will have a direct impact on the lives of people in the regions. Simko's campaign platform focuses primarily on supporting regional development, job creation, infrastructure development, the modernisation of public services, and improving the quality of life in all districts of the region. BRATISLAVA - Kristof Pitel and Tobias Sipocz have won the Slovak final of global start-up competition Red Bull Basement with their project SoilScale, a solution for vineyards and orchards using drone data and artificial intelligence (AI) to detect diseases and pests before they become visible to the naked eye, TASR reported earlier this week. According to Red Bull, the project will compete for a 100,000 USD (€85,193) investment at the world final to be held between 1 and 3 June in San Francisco, USA, where SoilScale will face other winners from more than 40 countries. "The idea was born at a school desk when we were thinking about what to improve. We noticed that the agricultural sector is less developed in terms of technology and AI," said Pitel. Their system uses multi-spectral imaging and high-resolution satellites to monitor chlorophyll changes and soil nutritional parameters. Other notable finalists included the Aidara project, which uses AI and WHO protocols to help health-care professionals to correctly diagnose paediatric patients, and Green Pulse Maps, which addresses urban heat islands using a mathematical algorithm and satellite imagery. A total of 405 projects applied for the Slovak leg of the competition this year. CANNES/BRATISLAVA - During a working visit to Cannes in France, Culture Minister Martina Simkovicova (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) attended a working lunch on Saturday with her French counterpart Catherine Pegard and ministers from Cyprus, Spain, Greece, and Luxembourg, as well as representatives of the European Commission to discuss the challenges and development of the audiovisual sector, TASR was told by the Culture Ministry's communications department on Saturday. The meeting focused on the current challenges facing the European audiovisual sector and on development issues in the context of growing global competition, digitisation, and technological changes, including the use of artificial intelligence. During the talks, they paid special attention to the need to strengthen the balance between supporting artistic creation and market functioning, as well as ensuring a stable and predictable environment for the development of audiovisual production. Simkovicova emphasised that European audiovisual production represents not only an economic sector but also an important part of Europe's cultural identity, which requires systematic public support. am