SLOVAK President Ivan Gašparovič presented the Order of the White Double-cross (2nd level) to John Edwin Mroz for his extraordinary work in Slovakia's NATO integration, the TASR news agency reported.

An American of Slovak ancestry, Mroz is a founder and leader of Institute of East-West Studies. As a consultant, Mroz has worked for more than 20 governments worldwide, including the USA, Germany, Poland and the Russian Federation, as well as the European Commission, NATO, Council of Europe and the G8.

Mroz has always promoted Slovakia, including its integration into NATO and EU.

In 1991, he made a significant contribution to the organization of East-West Summit, the first such international conference at that time in Slovakia, in Bardejov (Prešov region). Furthermore, Mroz participated in the creation of the Carpathian Euroregion, the first euroregion among the former socialist bloc countries.

Finance Minister Ivan Mikloš and US Ambassador to Slovakia Rodolphe M. Vallee also took part in the ceremony.

Compiled by Beata Balogová from press reports

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