President Iohannis pays official visit to Slovakia

President Klaus Iohannis is paying an official visit to Slovakia on Wednesday and Thursday. He is to meet is Slovak counterpart at the Presidential Palace in Bratislava, Andrej Kiska, on Wednesday the Presidential Administration informs.

In a joint press conference with his Slovak counterpart, President Klaus Iohannis said that we must deal with the tragedy in France, to consider it as a terrorist attack, while mentioning that Romania would not revise its stance on the refugee crisis and arguing that the decisions already taken at the European level should be enforced.

“We are not permitted to allow that our countries’ social tissue to be destroyed, to allow  xenophobia, ultranationalism and chauvinism to become relevant in our societies,” Iohannis said when asked if Brussels should revise the approach on mandatory migrant quota after the Paris terror attacks.

Also questioned of Romania would take similar actions as Slovakia, whose premier announced it would monitor the Muslim population after these terror attacks, the Romanian president denied, saying that Romania would never take these actions.

In his turn, Slovakia’s president Andrej Kiska congratulated Klaus Iohannis for the anti-corruption campaign carried out in Romania, asking him to unveil him Romania’s “know-how” in this field. “I asked Mr. president if he might tell us the know how on this topic and to say what made Romania’s anti-corruption fight get to such a high level,” Kiska said.

The two presidents also discussed about the terror threatens, Russia’s propaganda and energy security. In the end, the Slovak president presented his condolences for the Colectiv fire’s victims and for the ones of Paris terror attack.

Also on Wednesday, President Iohannis is taking part, next to the Slovak President, in the opening of the Bilateral Forum of the Romanian and Slovak Businessmen. He told Romanian and Slovak businessmen that Romania has a robust economic growth and that it intends to prepare the path to join Euro zone, but for this target steadfast reforms are needed, as well a development based on innovation and competitiveness.

Klaus Iohannis will also meet Slovakia’s premier Robert Fico and will have an encounter with Romanian young experts working in Bratislava area.

On Thursday, the Romanian president will go to Zvolen to attend the wreath ceremony at the Military Cemetery of the Romanian Army in Zvolen and will also take part in the ceremony decorating the Slovak veterans who participated in the liberation battles of the Slovak territory in WWII. Five veterans will be decorated. Iohannis will have a short encounter with the veterans and with the Zvolen residents.

Zvolen town is renowned for the cemetery of the Romanian heroes who fought for Czechoslovakia liberation during December 18, 1944 and May 12, 1945, in WWII.

The cemetery was built in 1958, with 10,384 Romanian military and other foreign ones being buried there.