Opinion

Bratislava Mayor Matúš Vallo (l) and Ukrainian Ambassador to Slovakia Myroslav Kastran stand in front of a destroyed Ukrainian ambulance in downtown Bratislava on 15 April 2025.

‘Appeasement emboldens dictators’: Ukraine’s ambassador on Russia, memory and war

As Ukraine resists invasion, Myroslav Kastran warns Europe not to repeat the mistakes of the 20th century.

A road sign points towards the Foreigners' Police building in Bratislava.

Pay to play?

Slovakia’s bureaucratic failings are making life almost impossible for many foreign residents – and costing the country dear.

The art of saying “no”

In a world that often praises constant “Yeses”, this reflection explores the peaceful strength and grace found in setting boundaries and honoring one’s inner truth.

Eva Staronova
Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico, right, and Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán pose for photographers during a round table meeting at an EU Summit in Brussels on March 22, 2024.

Last Week: In Slovakia, disinformation channels are tools of media capture

Robert Fico and his government are living in a symbiosis with them. 

Returning to the ancestral homeland isn’t about nostalgia or living in the past.

Coming home to a place you’ve never been

When descendants of Slovak immigrants walk the same paths as their ancestors, they rediscover family, identity, and a sense of belonging.

‘Adolescence’ is not just a drama. It’s a wake-up call for every parent and school

At The British International School Bratislava, we teach students about the dangers of online life.

Mark Hatherell
NBS Governor Peter Kažimír.

Last Week: Slovakia’s central bank governor still faces bribery case verdict

A judge decides that the amended Criminal Code does not give Peter Kažimír a pass. 

Convicted deal makers in the Slovak healthcare sector

Opaque deals, conflicts of interest, and weak oversight plague Slovakia's healthcare system.

Renáta Bláhová
A caricature of Pope Francis.

What is Pope Francis’s message to the powerful?

He called corruption the devil’s dung.

My granny, as she was affectionately known, left her home and traveled by train to Hamburg, Germany where she boarded a ship with $5 in her pocket. 

“Return not,” the ocean cried. But I returned for her

A granddaughter’s pilgrimage to Slovakia, fuelled by stories, slivovica and a love that never faded.

Beverly Clifford
Photo by Edite Enkuzena.

Spring’s whisper: A time for renewal and compassion

The seasons shift and nature awakens. Spring is here and it offers us a moment to reflect on the delicate balance we share with the earth and its creatures.

Eva Staronova
Tibor Gašpar.

Last Week: Fico erupts as ‘Purgatory’ case heads to court

His splenetic anger on this issue reveals where Smer’s priorities lie.

Slovak PM Robert Fico (left) and Indian PM Shri Narendra Modi (right)

Authoritarian echoes from Delhi to Bratislava

Slovakia and India’s ruling far-right populist parties share notable ideological and political parallels.

Amit Singh
Some of the characters from "A Minecraft Movie"
Video

Chicken Jockey! Chicken Jockey! Chicken Jockey!

Minecraft mania about to sweep Slovakia.

PM Robert Fico criticised diplomats from EU countries for not attending a commemoration of the WWII liberation of Bratislava, and suggested a referendum on military spending.

Last Week: And then they came for the NGOs

Fico’s government is set to implement another lesson from Putin’s playbook.

Volkswagen plant in Bratislava

A partnership centuries in the making

Slovakia’s accession to the EU enabled Germany to become its biggest trade partner.

Thomas Kurz
US President Donald Trump (l) and former Slovak premier Vladimír Mečiar (r)

What abides: Giving a shit

The twin towers are down, we’ve all moved on, but The Slovak Spectator’s essentials are as relevant as ever.

UK Ambassador Nigel Baker opens an open-air exhibition on Queen Elisabeth II on Hviezdoslavovo Square in Bratislava on August 2, 2022.

We are partners, friends and Allies

Three defining moments in the UK-Slovakia relationship.

The Slovak Spectator team back in 1996.

A paper that wasn’t supposed to last

Does an English-language newspaper still have relevance in Slovakia?

'Dutch' on patrol somewhere in Ukraine

Trading McDonald’s for the front lines

A Slovak-Dutch soldier’s journey from fast-food shifts to Ukraine’s battlefields, driven by prophetic dreams and an unwavering sense of purpose.

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