On 09 May 2020, the President of the Slovak Republic Zuzana Čaputová, the President of the National Council of the Slovak Republic Boris Kollár, and the Prime minister of the Slovak Republic Igor Matovič signed a joint declaration at Bratislava Castle to mark Europe Day. In it they expressed their shared wish, responsibility and commitment to cooperate in conducting a united and responsible foreign, European and security policy for the Slovak Republic and to build political consensus in these areas. 

The president believes that it is important for Slovakia to preserve its reputation abroad as a responsible and consistent partner. “I can say that the conversations I have had with the prime minister and the president of the parliament together with the government manifesto have convinced me that we are in accord on Slovakia’s foreign policy values and orientation. And I am ready to continue contributing to it”.

Full text of the joint declaration of the three highest constitutional officials: 
JOINT DECLARATION OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC, THE PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC AND THE PRIME MINISTER OF THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC MARKING EUROPE DAY (09/05/2020)
We the three highest constitutional officials – the President of the Slovak Republic, the President of the National Council of the Slovak Republic and the Prime minister of the Slovak Republic – have met today, on the occasion of Europe Day, to express our common wish and shared responsibility and commitment to cooperate in conducting a united and responsible foreign, European and security policy for the Slovak Republic.
The Slovak Republic is a free, sovereign and democratic state. We are a member of the EU and NATO. We have joined these organisations of our own free will. It shows that we stand with the world’s most advanced states, who are linked by the values of freedom, democracy, rule of law, protection of fundamental human rights and freedoms, respect for international law, solidarity and the wish to live and develop in peace. 

Our membership of the EU and NATO is the best path for a successful, prosperous, socially fair, and secure Slovakia. It is our strategic and vital interest that we continue to develop our membership and the benefits and duties that go with it. 

This holds true especially when we and other countries are facing serious challenges including violations of international law, disrespect for state sovereignty and the effects of climate change. The current pandemic threat and its economic and social consequences remind us not only of the importance of cooperation but also the need to accelerate the transformation of our economy. It is obvious that we can only meet these challenges through combined efforts, coordination and cooperation with our partners and allies.

We are confronted with the growth of extremism, populism and distrust in the state or European institutions. Our common values and the commitments that we have willingly accepted are also being questioned. Some of the damage to the social consensus has come from targeted disinformation and propaganda.  It would be worse if we lacked a consensus on the fundamental questions and values in our foreign and European policy. 

On this basis, we the three highest constitutional officials, declare that together we will:
work to strengthen the foreign policy consensus. We will act, promote our interests, and communicate clearly and unambiguously about our priorities, decisions and results in a way that leaves no doubts about the orientation of our foreign policy or our guiding values. We will do so both at home and abroad, so that Slovakia continues to be recognised as a responsible and consistent partner. In this regard, we will pay more attention to the spread of disinformation and propaganda and increase our activity to combat them;
be active and open in defending the values of freedom and democracy, defending the rule of law and respect for international rules, including the protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, and we will ensure that these principles become key criteria in promoting Slovakia’s interests in bilateral and multilateral relations.
actively pursue the interests of the Slovak Republic and its citizens in the European Union and seek partners to share in their promotion based on shared values, goals and interests;
promote the integration of European policies into domestic policies and the pursuit of Slovakia’s interests as the state’s priority in relations with EU institutions and European partners;
defend the preservation of fundamental European freedoms for our citizens, especially the free movement of persons, goods and services and the application of common rules in accordance with the principle of the solidarity and responsibility of all EU members;
support an EU budget and steps that enable our transition to a modern, environmentally friendly economy based on innovation and modern technology while preserving our competitiveness and the continued development of our infrastructure;
cooperate actively with the other V4 countries. The main criterion of our activities will be support for promoting Slovakia’s interests and the V4’s contribution to common solutions within the EU;
promote the Slovak Republic’s fulfilment of its collective defence obligations within NATO in accordance with the principle of solidarity between allies;
support the idea of strengthening European security and defence while preserving NATO as the main pillar of our security and collective defence;
take decisions and measures that maintain the stability and predictability of our defence spending, with the ambition of achieving a sustainable level of 2% of GDP in 2024, while ensuring that these funds are used transparently to good effect;
ensure that providing and maintaining security for Slovakia, its citizens and its infrastructure are fundamental criteria in all our decisions, including economic activities, and in foreign investments in Slovakia;
promote the preparation and approval of new strategic documents of the Slovak Republic, especially new security and defence strategies.  
Done at Bratislava, 09 May 2020.