BILATERAL RELATIONS BETWEEN ALBANIA AND SLOVAKIA

Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, the Czech Republic to the northwest and Austria to the southwest. The territory of Slovakia covers about 49,000 square kilometers. The population is over 5.4 million and consists mainly of Slovaks. The largest city is the capital Bratislava. The official language is Slovak.

Slovakia is a parliamentary democratic republic. The Slovak head of state and the formal head of the executive is the President, though with very limited powers. The president is elected by direct popular vote for a five-year term. Most executive power lies with the head of government, the prime minister, who is appointed by the president. Slovakia’s highest legislative body is the 150-seat unicameral National Council of the Slovak Republic. Deputies are elected for a four-year term on a proportional basis.

OVERVIEW

Albania and Slovakia have built a steady dialogue, especially in the recent years, through exchanges of high-level visits. The will of the Albanian government is to further foster the cooperation and to intensify the political and economic dialogue, especially in areas of mutual interest, such as energy, tourism, infrastructure, education, agriculture and the fields of art of culture.

The last visits include the visit in Tirana of the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, Mr Ivan Korčok, on 10 February 2021 and the visit in Bratislava of the Acting Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of Albania, Mr. Gent Cakaj, on 09 May 2019, where was reaffirmed the full support of Slovakia for the reforms undertaken by Albania towards the integration process. A visit to Tirana was also paid by the Secretary of State (First Deputy Minister) of the Slovak Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, Mr. Martin Klus, on 30 April 2021.

BILATERAL RELATIONS

Historical relations reflect the common efforts in the past, for freedom and dignity, and also protecting the values ​​of today’s civilization. The diplomatic relations between Albania and Czechoslovakia were established on 05 July 1922, and they were interrupted during the World War II, to be restored on 10 December 1945.

Following the dissolution of the Czechoslovak Federal Republic, in December 1992, the Slovak Republic sought its recognition and the establishment of diplomatic relations with Albania. On 1 January 1993, Albania recognized the Slovak Republic and on 4 January 1993 declared the establishment of diplomatic relations.

After the fall of the iron curtain, relations between the two countries had a new impetus in the new global political order, where the two countries looked towards democratization and economic development with open and free trade, reflected in both bilateral and multilateral aspect.

Slovakia has provided continuous support to Albania’s integration processes. In this context, in March 2015, during the visit to Tirana of the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Slovakia, Mr. Miroslav Lajčák, a Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between the two countries on European Integration issues. During all high-level meetings, Albania has been reassured for this support in terms of the steps that Albania has taken in recent years in the European integration process. Slovakia also provided assistance to the WBF (Western Balkans Fund) and its Secretariat located in Tirana, following the successful model of the Visegrad International Fund. Slovakia also remains active towards the cooperation between IFV and WB6.