MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Sunday, April 27, 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Saturday, April 26): VATICAN CITY/BRATISLAVA - We should follow up on the legacy of Pope Francis and continue in it, stated Foreign Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD), who attended the Pope's funeral at the Vatican along with President Peter Pellegrini on Saturday. "I paid honour and tribute to the work and legacy that Pope Francis left us. That's how we should look at this moment and approach it: to build on his legacy and continue in it, to realise that our journey begins when we are born into this world with absolutely nothing and that's how we will leave it. We won't take any possessions with us, nothing of what people have accumulated during their lives," the chief of the Slovak diplomacy has posted on a social network. Pope Francis managed to raise many courageous issues that were taboo in the church before, stated Blanar, stressing the need for the church to reflect on this. BRATISLAVA - People should follow the suit of Pope Francis and think about dialogue more than about fighting, as this is the way to live through the most complex historical events. "Without it, we have no chance," Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD) posted on a social network in connection with the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday. According to Sutaj Estok, Pope Francis was a man of peace, seeking peace for Gaza, as well as for Ukraine. "I have hope that, with the help of Francis' successor, both Gaza and Ukraine will experience peace in the near future. The whole world needs it," noted the minister. He urged people not forget the Pope's words: "a negotiated peace is better than an endless war". BRATISLAVA/NEW YORK - The international agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) on Friday (April 25) affirmed Slovakia's A+ local currency sovereign credit rating, but downgraded its outlook from stable to negative, citing global developments as the main reason behind the downgrade. "The good news is that Slovakia has maintained its A+ rating, which is two notches higher than that of Fitch and Moody's. However, the uncertainty brought by the threat of global trade wars is worsening Slovakia's outlook from stable to negative," reacted the Slovak Finance Ministry. According to the ministry, S&P analysts in their report praised the government's significant fiscal consolidation efforts. They estimate that the deficit will decrease to 4.7 percent of GDP in 2025. This assumption is fully in line with the Finance Ministry's plan, which has also been defined in the state budget approved for this year. BRATISLAVA/BORDEAUX - Wines made by the best 22 winemakers from Slovakia have been presented at Cite du Vin in Bordeaux, France, Maria Jurovcikova of the Foreign Affairs Ministry has informed TASR. The presentations at Cite du Vin were hosted by Frenchman David Papillon, a member of the Slovak Association of Winegrowers and Winemakers (ZVVS) who has been living and producing wine in Slovakia for many years. According to Jurovcikova, ZVVS in the autumn of 2024 signed a three-year contract with the Foundation for Wine Culture and Civilisation and the world's largest viticulture and wine museum, Cite du Vin in Bordeaux. This will enable it to present Slovak wines and wine regions in the most famous and important wine region of the world from 2025 to 2027. Wines from 22 Slovak winemakers were chosen in the first year, with 528 bottles of wine in total sent to Bordeaux. ko