(source: SME.sk / Hej,ty)
Good evening. The Tuesday, February 1 edition of Today in Slovakia is ready with the main news of the day in less than five minutes. We wish you a pleasant read.
General prosecutor asked about his trip to Moscow
General Prosecutor Maroš Žilinka (source: SME)
MPs wanted to ask General Prosecutor Maroš Žilinka about his recent trip to Moscow on two parliamentary committees. Neither had a quorum and was able to start the session.
While Žilinka left the meeting of the parliamentary foreign affairs committee on Monday, he stayed to answer the questions of MPs on parliamentary constitutional and legal affairs.
Žilinka admitted when speaking to journalists that he did not discuss the criminal accusations against the Russian government when visiting Moscow. He added that he can imagine cooperating with Russia when it comes to revealing cyber-crimes, even though the Russian secret services are suspected of cyberattacks on Slovakia, among others, the Sme daily wrote.
Žilinka rejected the links between his visit to Moscow and his objections towards the defence deal with the United States, submitted just days before his departure, claiming that it was only a coincidence.
Flights from Bratislava to double in February
Illustrative stock photo (source: Archive of Sme)
The flight schedules of most airliners are slowly returning to normal after flight suspensions and restrictions.
Measures in several countries where flights are made from Bratislava, for example in the United Kingdom or Denmark, are set to be further relaxed this month.
Ryanair will operate a total of fourteen direct flights from Bratislava as of February, Wizzair will operate two.
Coronavirus and vaccination news
(source: Sme - Marko Erd)
14,643 people were newly diagnosed as Covid positive out of 31,595 PCR tests performed on Monday. The number of people in hospitals is 1,663 people. 20 more deaths were reported on Monday. The vaccination rate is at 50.88 percent, 2,798,166 people having received the first dose of the vaccine. More stats on Covid-19 in Slovakia here.
The new vaccine by the Novavax company should arrive in Slovakia on February 21, said Health Minister Vladimír Lengvarský on the Expres Radio talk show Braňo Závodský Live. A total of 340,000 vaccines should arrive to Slovakia. Decisions on how it will be used and combined will be held in the upcoming days.
Quarantine for incomers to Slovakia will be shorter as of February 4. At the same time, a PCR test will no longer be required when arriving from the UK.
The administration of monoclonal antibodies against Covid should be stopped in about a week, the Health Ministry expects. "Currently, monoclonal antibodies are administered to patients with the Delta variant of the coronavirus," spokesperson Zuzana Eliášová said. Several Czech professional medical societies have recently pointed out that the available monoclonal antibodies do not work against the Omicron variant.
Photo of the day
As you find yourself on the top of Klokoč, you will see a cross with nails. These nails are the sorrows of the people who have come before. Read more about hike here.
Feature story for today
Dual education is nothing new in Slovakia. Today, industrial companies, retail chains, IT companies, and providers of logistics services as well as companies in the hospitality sector offer educational opportunities for their future employees.
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In other news
Vaillant Group development centre in Skalica will broaden the team of 67 developers by another 17 experts. According to the head of the centre, Peter Havlík, the centre is looking for development specialists, mechanical and electrical designers, project managers and shift coordinators.
Strengthening the defence of the eastern border of Slovakia, as well as the entire eastern wing of NATO by Allied forces, is in our own interest, according to President Zuzana Čaputová. She stated that Slovakia is discussing with Ukraine what the country currently needs. She also called on people not to lose a sense of justice, to keep calm and to distinguish between facts and propaganda.
US President Joe Biden has chosen American Ambassador to Slovakia, Bridget Brink, as the new ambassador to Kyiv. She should arrive to Ukraine at a time of increasing tension with 130,000 Russian soldiers at the Ukrainian-Russian border, according to CBS news. Ambassador Brink remains focused on advancing the relationship between the United States and the Slovak Republic, as US Embassy to Slovakia spokesperson Tara Hall, told The Slovak Spectator.
HBO announced that March 8 is the date the streaming service HBO Max will be launched in Slovakia. The service will replace HBO GO and it will also showcase the films and TV series of Warner Bros, HBO, DC, Cartoon Network and Max Originals. The service will cost €6.99 per month, customers of HBO GO paying a third less.
Another alternative energy supplier in Slovakia has collapsed. Following Slovakia Energy, BCF Energy, Smart Energy Contractor SEC and Twinlogy, Greenlogy is no longer able to supply its customers with natural gas. As of the first day of February, Slovenský Plynárenský Priemysel (SPP) has taken over 112 offtake points as a last resort supplier.
Four countries have submitted bids for tracked technologies for the armed forces. These are Hungary, Sweden, Spain and Poland. The Ministry of Defence addressed a total of 33 countries.
Do not miss on Spectator.sk today
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