China has achieved incredible transformation in very short time: Slovak PM

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Friday that China deserves recognition for the remarkable transformation it has achieved in such a short period and for its vital role in global development.

Fico, on an official visit to China through November 5, made the remarks at the China-Slovakia Business Forum held in Beijing on Friday.

Alongside leaders of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Fico also witnessed the signing of several business cooperation agreements at the event.

He said that Slovakia and China have huge potential for economic and trade cooperation, adding that Chinese and Slovak enterprises will jointly establish a plant in Slovakia to produce batteries for electric vehicles.

"Already my previous visit to China as Prime Minister 17 years ago offered fascinating insight into your country's remarkable progress. The incredible transformation that China has achieved in such a short time deeply impressed me. We gather today to celebrate the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our nations. This milestone represents years of friendship and mutual understanding. Our countries have built pragmatic relations based on mutual respect and shared interests. China deserves recognition for its unprecedented economic achievements and its role in stabilizing global development," Fico said.

For his part, CCPIT Vice Chairman Zhang Shaogang noted that in recent years, trade between China and Slovakia has grown actively, with an increasing number of Chinese enterprises choosing to invest in Slovakia.

"In recent years China-Slovakia relations have maintained strong development momentum, with practical cooperation flourishing. Supported by the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-Central and Eastern Europe Cooperation Mechanism (CEEC), the level of economic and trade cooperation between China and Slovakia is continually improving," Zhang said.

The bilateral trade volume grew from 40.9 million U.S. dollars in 1993 to 11.53 billion U.S. dollars in 2023.

China is Slovakia's largest trading partner outside the European Union, while Slovakia is China's largest source of imports in Central and Eastern Europe, Zhang added.

China has achieved incredible transformation in very short time: Slovak PM

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Juraj Blanar, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Slovakia, in Beijing on Friday, with both sides vowing to strive for new progress in bilateral relations.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico's visit to China is highly productive and fruitful.

He said the elevation of China-Slovakia relations to a strategic partnership sends a positive signal to the world.

China has always viewed and developed its relations with Slovakia from a long-term and strategic perspective and is willing to jointly implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and promote the steady and sustained development of bilateral relations, Wang said.

Blanar said Prime Minister Fico's visit is of historic significance. He looks forward to taking the establishment of a strategic partnership as a new starting point to promote greater development of bilateral relations.

The two sides also exchanged views on China-EU relations.

Fico is on an official visit to China from Oct 31 to Nov 5. During his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping Friday, they decided to elevate China-Slovakia relations to a strategic partnership.

Chinese, Slovak foreign ministers meet on closer ties