This is your overview of news from Slovakia from Friday, June 5, 2020. To get a quick picture of what happens in the country, follow our daily news digests here.
Čaputová delivers her annual address
- “Let’s not return to the state society was in before corona,” President Zuzana Čaputová said in parliament during her first-ever state of the republic address.
- The state of the judiciary was one of the rare non-pandemic-related points that Čaputová brought up while speaking to MPs, who then went on to discuss the proposed law that aims to change the election of the general prosecutor, among other things.
Jankovská steps down as judge with a letter from prison
- On the same day, the former Justice Ministry state secretary for Smer, who stepped down due to her prominent appearance in the Threema messages of Marian Kočner and now faces corruption charges while in custody, Monika Jankovská, gave up her position as judge. She announced her resignation in a letter to the Office of the President. (TASR)
More free movement as of Friday
- State borders between Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria and Slovakia are open as of 8:00 on Friday, June 5, for citizens and residents of these countries without limitation, announced PM Igor Matovič at the Slovak-Hungarian border. Read more about which borders are now free to cross.
Former research centre director returns to Brussels
- After his stint with the Progressive Slovakia party, which did not make it to parliament in the February 28 election, the one-time high-ranking European Commission official Vladimír Šucha returns to Brussels. The European Commission has decided to create the temporary post of special advisor at the DG EAC directorate general, and have offered the placement to Šucha, who in the past served as the general director of the Joint Research Centre. (TASR)
Demand for U.S. Steel products down by 40 percent
- U.S. Steel Kosice (USSK) reports a 40 percent fall in demand. Due to planned repairs, they have limited production at one of the two blast furnaces currently in operation to the minimum, said USSK spokesman Ján Bača. "There is a decline in demand for steel throughout Europe," he added.
The company expects measures for steel imports from third countries to be tightened. The European Commission should address this issue later this month. (SITA)
Weekend reads on Spectator.sk:
People in Slovakia baulk at coronavirus vaccine as crisis wanes Read more
Roundup: An app with all Slovak stamps in English Read more
To love or to hate Bratislava (from our archive) Read more
Iconic pharmacy Salvator in Bratislava is closer to new life Read more
