On Wednesday, Slovaks and Czechs celebrated the 102nd anniversary of the foundation of their common state - Czechoslovakia, which was established in 1918 after the WWI and the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
On this occasion, Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová held a telephone call with her Czech counterpart Miloš Zeman to offer congratulations and to show solidarity during the coronavirus outbreak. With its democratic character, the Czechoslovak Constitution placed the fledgling state among countries with the most developed constitutions in the world. "For the first time in history, they identified the Constitutional Court as a court institution with exclusive power to supervise constitutionality, and the 1920 general election was the first in the world to grant the franchise to women as well," said Čaputová.
Deputy speaker of Slovak Parliament Gábor Grendel said that the formation of the country enabled a boom in education, culture and economy on the territory of today's Slovakia. "Czechoslovakia went through a war, a long period of totalitarianism and finally a division. However, we met again in the European Union as two equal countries. Although each of our states is going its own way and is dealing with different situations, we also face common challenges. In the current difficult situation in particular, it's certainly good to have a reliable partner close to us, knowing that we can turn to it with confidence," said the minister.
