Blanar Asks Spain to Provide Air Defence System to Slovakia

Brussels/Bratislava, April 3 (TASR) - Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) asked Spain to provide its air defence system to Slovakia, on the basis of NATO rotation system, until Slovakia acquires its own airspace defence, TASR learnt on Thursday. Speaking after his bilateral talks with Spanish counterpart Jose Manuel Albares in Brussels on the sidelines of the NATO foreign ministers summit, Blanar claimed he made the request with respect to the presence of Spanish soldiers in Slovakia as part of the NATO forward presence on its eastern flank. According to Blanar, Albares embraced the idea politically and will convey it to the Spanish government. Blanar expects Slovakia to acquire its own airspace defence capability by the end of 2026. The chief of Spanish diplomacy also invited Blanar to visit Madrid in early June. "Spain is our twelfth most important trade partner and I'm glad to note that the number of Slovak firms investing in this country is also continuously growing. We'd like to develop our economic activities, whether it be in the automobile industry, infrastructure, energy or defence," stated Blanar. mf