Prime Minister Babiš in Bratislava: Czech Republic and Slovakia plan first joint government meeting in years

Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš made his first foreign trip of 2026 to Bratislava. There, he met his Slovak counterpart Robert Fico and held bilateral talks on energy prices, European competitiveness, and the resumption of joint government meetings.

The Czech Prime Minister’s first foreign visit on Thursday, 8 January 2026, took him to Bratislava, where he met Robert Fico. The main focus of the talks was the resumption of bilateral government consultations between the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The first joint government meeting is already planned for the end of March in Prague.

In addition to the meeting with Fico, Babiš also spoke with Slovak President Peter Pellegrini and the Speaker of the National Council of the Slovak Republic, Richard Raši.

Foto: Vláda České republiky

“My first foreign trip naturally took me to Slovakia. The cooperation between our countries has been excellent in the past. We shared a common state for 75 years, and Slovakia is a priority for us. We have agreed to resume the joint government meetings. The first meeting could take place on 31 March in the Czech Republic. After that, bilateral meetings of our ministers will begin,” Babiš explained.

Another key topic was the agenda of the informal meeting of European heads of state and government on 12 February in Belgium, which will focus on European competitiveness. Babiš emphasised the challenges of high energy prices and criticised the economic consequences of the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS 1) for Europe. He announced that he would urge EU countries by letter to adopt a concrete package of measures, including financing for gas and nuclear energy, reducing the price volatility of emission allowances, and allowing exemptions for particularly affected states.

Foto: Vláda České republiky

At the end of his visit to Bratislava, Babiš laid wreaths at the monuments of T. G. Masaryk and M. R. Štefánik, underlining the historical ties between the two neighbouring states.