Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico confirmed on October 19 that he would insist on the same guarantees of the indisputability of the 1945 Beneš Decrees as the Czech Republic would get at the European Council meeting at the end of the month. Otherwise, he will not back the Lisbon Treaty, the SITA newswire wrote.
If the Czech Republic negotiates an opt-out and politically boosts its protection against any doubt cast on the Decrees adopted by President Beneš adopted after WWII, Slovakia will not be able to remain passive regarding the same decrees and their opponents, SITA wrote.
Fico said there are two options for the country: Slovakia will either veto the Czech request or insist that the opt-out also apply to the Slovak Republic. Unless the country does so, Fico sees a risk that the government will face harsh criticism for insufficiently defending the national interests of the Slovak Republic and, moreover, for any immediate attempts to contest the Beneš Decrees which would enjoy less political protection in Slovakia than in the Czech Republic. The Slovak Parliament has also confirmed the unchangeable and irrevocable nature of these decrees. SITA
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
