Stronger police presence to appear on Slovak streets

Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák (Smer-SD) announced that as of midnight on Tuesday, the police presence on the streets of Slovakia has been doubled, as always happens in the wake of terror attacks, such as the one that took place in Berlin on Monday. Kaliňák also assured the public that Slovakia has no information that it's exposed to an imminent security threat. Another measure adopted is the intense protection of borders with the Czech Republic and Austria "to create leeway for collecting information and exchanging it with our partners". "This state [of alert] is to remain in place until further notice, until the Christmas holidays at the minimum," said the minister. According to Kaliňák, at least 1,000 patrols have been dispatched onto the streets since midnight, a big increase from the regular 300, which was recently increased to 500. The police have mainly been patrolling busy hubs such as shopping centres and Christmas markets. Kaliňák also claimed that like all other countries, Slovakia is ready to provide aid to Berlin.