Pellegrini confident Czech–Slovak ties will improve under Babiš

Slovak President Peter Pellegrini said aid he was optimistic about the future of Czech–Slovak relations, expecting intergovernmental talks to resume once ANO leader Andrej Babiš becomes Czech prime minister. He made the remarks on Slovakia’s public broadcaster STVR.

Relations between Prague and Bratislava were strained by last year’s decision of outgoing Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s (Civic Democrats) government to suspend intergovernmental consultations, citing divergent views on key foreign-policy issues. The Slovak government of Robert Fico (SMER) had, for instance, halted military aid to Ukraine from state reserves.

Pellegrini welcomed the recent visit to Bratislava by a delegation led by the new Speaker of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, Tomio Okamura (SPD), and noted that he does not plan to meet representatives of the future Czech opposition during their announced trip.

The Czech president is due to appoint Babiš as prime minister on Tuesday.