”WE want to remove anything that prevents normal communication between Slovakia and Hungary and the further development of our relationship,” said Slovak Parliamentary Speaker Pavol Paška after a meeting with his Hungarian counterpart, Katalin Szili.
The two officials declared a common interest in achieving a high level of bilateral relations between both countries.
"We want our cooperation to be open and beneficial for the citizens of our two countries," Paška said.
Slovak-Hungarian relations suffered following the formation of the new Slovak ruling coalition, which includes the far-right Slovak National Party (SNS), whose leader, Ján Slota, is infamous for his anti-Hungarian statements.
Tensions also rose after a series of provocations by nationalists in Slovakia and Hungary and what was believed to have been an ethnically-motivated attack on an ethnic Hungarian student, Hedviga Malinová, living in the south of Slovakia.
The officials said they were determined to eliminate any possible tensions.
"We live in the middle of Europe together, and we want to live like this in future as well," Paška said.
