Xi Jinping Calls for Stronger China–Slovakia Strategic Partnership

Dragon Media News Desk

China–Slovakia Strategic Partnership

Chinese President Xi Jinping has said China is ready to work with Slovakia to build a strategic partnership based on mutual respect and trust, equality, mutual benefit, stability and resilience.

Xi made the remarks during talks in Beijing on Tuesday with Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, who is on a state visit to China from Monday through Wednesday.

According to China’s state news agency Xinhua, Xi said mutual respect for each other’s development paths and a firm commitment to friendship and cooperation had laid the foundation for the sound and rapid growth of China–Slovakia relations.

He called on the two countries to explore cooperation opportunities in emerging and frontier sectors, including clean energy, the digital economy, robotics and artificial intelligence, and to create new areas of growth in bilateral cooperation.

Xi also said the two countries should expand exchanges in culture, sports, tourism, youth affairs and cooperation between local governments, while making travel between China and Slovakia more convenient.

President Pellegrini said Slovakia attaches great importance to its strategic partnership with China and expects further progress in economic and trade cooperation, artificial intelligence, the digital economy, robotics and new energy.

According to Xinhua, he also said Slovakia welcomes more Chinese enterprises to invest in the country. Before the talks, Xi hosted a welcoming ceremony for Pellegrini and later held a banquet in his honour.

In a post on the social media platform X, Pellegrini described his meeting with Xi as inspiring and forward-looking. He said both sides had reaffirmed the importance of their strategic partnership and their shared ambition to build stronger ties between Slovakia and China.

China and Slovakia decided to elevate their bilateral relations to a strategic partnership during Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s official visit to China in November 2024.

According to China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, bilateral trade between China and Slovakia reached $8.63 billion in 2025, including $4.39 billion in Chinese exports to Slovakia.

Cui Hongjian, a professor at the Academy of Regional and Global Governance under Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times that stability and steady progress had become defining features of China–Slovakia relations.

He said political mutual trust between the two countries had continued to deepen in recent years. At a time when several European countries are readjusting their China policies and experiencing fluctuations in bilateral relations, stable trust between China and Slovakia is particularly valuable, he added.

Cui said China holds strong competitive advantages in green energy, digital industries and intelligent manufacturing, while Slovakia has maintained a pragmatic approach to cooperation. However, he noted that complex European political realities could constrain bilateral cooperation and said delivering more concrete projects at the local level should be a priority.

Kong Tianping, a senior research fellow at the China–Central and Eastern European Countries Economic and Trade Cooperation Institute of Ningbo University, said there is broad potential for cooperation between Slovakia’s automotive industry and China’s strengths in new-energy vehicles and battery production.

He said the two countries could work together across the new-energy vehicle industrial chain, battery manufacturing and the transformation of the automobile industry. Slovakia has also remained an active participant in scientific and technological cooperation under the China–Central and Eastern European Countries cooperation framework.

According to the Slovak Presidential Office, Pellegrini’s itinerary includes visits to major Chinese technology and innovation centres. He is scheduled to visit Baidu, a Chinese company active in artificial intelligence, cloud computing and autonomous mobility, as well as a robotics centre.

During the talks, Xi said China and Slovakia should safeguard the international system centred on the United Nations and the international order based on international law.

He called on both countries to jointly promote an equal and orderly multipolar world, universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalisation, and the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

Xi said China has always regarded the European Union as a partner and has developed relations with the bloc with sincerity and goodwill. He urged Slovakia to play a constructive role in promoting the sound and stable development of China–EU relations.

Pellegrini said that, as an EU member state, Slovakia is willing to actively promote cooperation between the European Union and China and support the proper settlement of differences through dialogue and consultation.

He also expressed Slovakia’s willingness to work with China to uphold multilateralism, defend the purposes of the UN Charter and international law, and promote regional and global peace and stability. He said Slovakia would also strengthen coordination with China on global governance of artificial intelligence.

Analysts said Slovakia has consistently supported pragmatic engagement with China within the European Union. At a time of continuing China–EU trade tensions and growing differences within Europe over China policy, high-level dialogue between Beijing and Bratislava is expected to contribute not only to bilateral cooperation but also to the stability of broader China–Europe relations.