Foreign Minister Blanar Heads to New York for 81st UN General Assembly Session

Bratislava, 20 September (TASR) - Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) departed for New York on Sunday as part of the delegation led by President Peter Pellegrini to represent Slovakia at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), TASR learnt from the ministry's communications department on the same day. During his working trip, Blanar will focus on promoting the priorities of Slovak diplomacy, securing support for Slovakia's candidacy for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2028–2029 term, as well as on strengthening Slovakia's partnerships within the Visegrad Group (V4: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia), the European Union (EU) and other international formats. "Slovakia is coming to New York with a clear interest in being an active and constructive partner in addressing global challenges. Our priority is to promote a multilateral system based on the UN Charter and international law, as well as to secure support for Slovakia's candidacy for a non-permanent seat on the Security Council. During talks with partners from different regions of the world, I want to present our priorities while also seeking specific opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation," said Blanar. The talks will follow up on the official presentation of Slovakia's candidacy at UN headquarters in New York in July, with more than 120 member states having already expressed their support. Blanar will also hold talks on bilateral relations and current international issues. Meetings have been confirmed with several foreign ministers from Europe, Africa and Asia. During the high-level week, Blanar will attend the opening of the UNGA general debate, as well as the Slovak president's address to the General Assembly. As the presiding state of the Visegrad Group, Slovakia will chair the first-ever meeting of foreign ministers in the V4 Plus format with India in New York, which will be attended by Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. In the following days, Blanar will attend a side event of the EU to discuss Ukraine at the ministerial level, an informal EU–CELAC Ministerial Meeting on relations between the EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, a meeting of the Informal Ministerial Network for the International Criminal Court, and a ministerial meeting of the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution. jrg