MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Saturday, 24 October 2026 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Friday, 23 October): BRATISLAVA - The number of police officers at A&E departments will be stepped up as of Friday, stated Health Minister Kamil Sasko on the same day, adding that he's agreed this with Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (both Voice-SD). Sasko was responding to attacks on health-care workers. He's also instructing the directors of state-run hospitals to implement four key measures. "The police will monitor high-risk situations and intervene immediately against violent behaviour. Both medical staff and patients themselves must feel safe in A&E departments," said Sasko, adding that following an attack on a nurse at Kramare hospital in Bratislava he ordered an assessment of how well A&E departments in state hospitals are protected. "At the same time, I ordered the immediate drafting of a uniform standard for protecting health-care staff and patients. We're working on this in collaboration with the Interior Ministry and the Police Corps," he said. The health minister has instructed the directors of state-run hospitals to introduce four basic measures. The first of these is panic buttons. "We'll roll these out and link them to the central security desk or the security service. Help will thus arrive immediately, throughout the entire operating hours of the A&E department," he said. The second measure is an audible alarm. When an emergency button is pressed, an alarm signal is triggered on the spot. The third measure involves practical training for designated staff so that they can recognise risks in good time, defuse a conflict, call for help and protect themselves in the event of a threat. The training will be led by certified instructors with practical experience. "At the same time, we're also preparing to strengthen physical security and response teams for A&E departments, as well as CCTV surveillance of entrances and public areas at high-risk workplaces," stated Sasko, adding that, taken together, this will create a comprehensive system to protect health-care workers from violence. The plan is to evaluate and improve the system on an ongoing basis in collaboration with health-care workers. An incident occurred at the A&E department of the hospital in the Bratislava borough of Ruzinov on Friday morning in which a man attacked medical staff. The police arrested the attacker, a 34-year-old Irish national, upon arriving at the scene. A hospital employee sustained injuries to the face during the incident. Prosecutor-General Maros Zilinka has responded by saying that yet another attack on health-care workers in such a short space of time confirms a systemic failure to protect health-care staff while they are carrying out their duties. BRATISLAVA - Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) stated on Friday that he sees no reason to withdraw the proposal to appoint Filip Kuffa as environment minister, despite the objections of President Peter Pellegrini. Fico posted on social media on Friday that he has taken note of the president's position, but the coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) is insisting on Kuffa's nomination. According to the statement, Fico respects [SNS leader Andrej] Danko's right under the coalition agreement to propose a candidate for the post of environment minister, adding that his duty as premier is to submit this nomination to the president. "The president has no right to reject such a nomination, he may only make an informal request to the premier to reconsider it. The premier has taken note of this informal approach taken by the president. The premier has acknowledged the stance of the SNS chairman that the party insists on its original nomination. Under these circumstances, and in full respect of the coalition agreement and the presumption of innocence, the premier has no reason to withdraw the nomination of Filip Kuffa for the environment minister post. If SNS changes its mind and puts forward a different personnel proposal, the premier will forward that nomination to the president in line with the coalition agreement," stated Fico. Fico added that he's still ready to bear political responsibility for running the ministry. Practical matters regarding the management of the ministry are being handled by a designated state secretary based on a formal and full mandate. Kuffa announced in early October that he would be given the mandate. Danko also confirmed on social media that he and the premier have reached an agreement. Kuffa's nomination for the post of environment minister remains in place. "[Former Environment Minister Tomas] Taraba threatened both of us, and it ended up badly for him. He blackmailed and deceived us both when he promised to resign himself by 30 September. Conflict is a necessary evil in politics, but it must have its limits," stated the SNS leader. BRATISLAVA - People who have worked all their lives and helped to build a better future for the next generations deserve a dignified retirement as well, President Peter Pellegrini told a nationwide gathering of senior citizens held in Bratislava on Thursday (22 October) to mark the Month of Respect for Older People. During the ceremony, letters of appreciation were awarded to 18 seniors in recognition of their lifelong efforts, work and contribution to Slovakia's development. "We mustn't let folk who've worked their whole lives be worse off just for reaching retirement age," said Pellegrini, adding that senior care shouldn't be limited to words of gratitude and recognition, but must also be reflected in their living conditions. The president highlighted the lifelong work of older generations and stressed the need for solidarity between younger and older people. "Society as a whole benefits when we bring together the energy and enthusiasm of young people with the experience and wisdom of our older generation," he said. House Chair Richard Rasi (Voice-SD) praised the contribution of older generations to building Slovakia and stressed that respect for older people must also be reflected in specific measures. In this context, he cited the introduction of a full 13th pension, changes to pension calculations to remove the disadvantage faced by mothers, and social services reform. "Every decision must put people first; not spreadsheets, not statistics, people," stressed Rasi. PRAGUE - Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) will travel to Prague next Tuesday (27 October) to unveil a statue of Czech-Slovak friendship along with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis in the garden of the Straka Academy, the seat of government of the Czech Republic, head of the Czech Government Office's communications department Martin Vodicka told TASR's special correspondent in Prague on Friday. "Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Andrej Babis will meet Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic Robert Fico on Tuesday, 27 October 2026," announced Vodicka without giving any further details regarding other items on the agenda, possible talks or media appearances. Babis and Fico will also meet in Bratislava for a joint session of the Czech and Slovak governments that is scheduled to take place on 10 November. Later, on 26 November, a Visegrad Group summit (V4: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia) will be held in Bratislava. PRAGUE - At a joint meeting to be held in Lviv on 5 November, representatives of the Slovak and Ukrainian governments will also discuss their views on how to bring the conflict between Ukraine and Russia to an end, stated Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) on Friday, following talks with his Czech counterpart Petr Macinka in Prague, emphasising that Slovakia is keen for Ukraine to prosper and be democratic, but it needs empathy from Ukraine; for example, regarding gas supplies. TASR learnt the news from its special correspondent in Prague. The Slovak minister noted that this will be the fourth round of talks with the Ukrainian cabinet. "We're the only country in the European Union to be holding such intensive talks with Ukraine. [...] It's important for us that our neighbour is stable, democratic and prosperous. That's why we also support Ukraine on its path to the European Union, because I believe that this offers an opportunity for them to carry out the painful reforms that they've been unable to implement from independence to this day. [...] But at the same time, we're saying that we also need some empathy from Ukraine on issues such as gas supplies and so on, and we'll be discussing this," said Blanar, outlining the agenda for the meeting in November. Slovakia's chief diplomat will discuss the prospects for ending the war beforehand with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who will receive him in Moscow on Monday (26 October). At the same time, the Intergovernmental Commission for Economic and Scientific-Technical Co-operation between Russia and Slovakia will meet there for the first time in five years. KRUZLOVA - The memorial to Marshal Ivan Konev in the Valley of Death, near the village of Kruzlova (Presov region) has been vandalised, with unknown perpetrators smashing the commemorative plaque, spraying the statue's plinth with red paint, and writing the word 'gyilkos', which means 'murderer' in Hungarian, the Slovak Union of Anti-Fascist Fighters (SZPB) told TASR on Friday, adding that it is filing a criminal complaint in this matter. The sculptor and owner of the statue, Slavomir Gibej, told TASR that he had already filed a criminal complaint. This is the second incident involving the statue since its unveiling in early October. "SZPB considers this attack to be extremely serious and unacceptable. The destruction of military memorials cannot be justified by political views, ideological differences or differing perspectives on historical events. In a democratic society, it must not be permissible for political and social conflicts to spill over into physical attacks on historical memorials," stated the anti-fascist union. "As the creator of the work, I strongly condemn this act of vandalism. According to CCTV footage, a vehicle with a Hungarian registration number was present at the scene. This statue is not located in Hungary and wasn't created to celebrate Konev's entire career. It commemorates the autumn of 1944 and the Dukla Pass battle, the aim of which was to support the Slovak National Uprising, and during which tens of thousands of Soviet and Czechoslovak soldiers were killed or wounded. The Valley of Death is a place of remembrance for their sacrifices," said Gibej. am