Slovakia wants to draw on its decades of experience in the civilian nuclear sector to develop scientific and technical cooperation with Australia and establish links between Slovak research institutions and companies and their Australian counterparts. Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanár (Smer-SD) made these remarks during a visit to the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), accompanied by representatives of Slovak companies and institutions. He said that Australia’s association with certain parts of the Horizon Europe programme could also create new opportunities.
“Slovakia is a member state of the European Union, and substantial funding has been allocated under the Horizon Europe programme specifically for civilian nuclear energy research. With Australia’s accession, significant new opportunities are opening up for us to participate in these activities together,” Blanár stressed. He said this would give Slovak research institutions further opportunities to apply their expertise in joint projects with Australia.
The head of Slovak diplomacy sees opportunities in nuclear medicine and radiopharmaceutical production, areas in which ANSTO is active, as well as in advanced materials research, radiation protection, specialised training and expert exchanges.
“Slovakia is well known for its use of civilian nuclear energy to generate electricity. However, we are also interested in contributing to civilian research that serves medicine, the electrical engineering industry and many other fields whose potential we may not even be able to imagine today,” the minister explained.
During his visit to MOVE Australia 2026, a nationwide professional conference and exhibition dedicated to the future of transport and mobility in Sydney Blanár announced that Slovakia wants to expand trade with Australia and help Slovak companies find partners beyond the traditional automotive industry, particularly in smart mobility, engineering, energy and digital technologies. At the conference he visited the Slovak exhibition stand where 5 Slovak companies are presenting their solutions at the event.
“Slovakia is known worldwide primarily for its automotive industry, with cars accounting for as much as three-quarters of Slovak exports to Australia. However, it is the transformation currently taking place in this sector that brings us to the other side of the world — electrification, automation, connected transport, smart infrastructure, industrial software and low-emission mobility,” Blanár said.
Slovakia’s top diplomat is on a working visit to the Kingdom of Thailand and Australia from 11 to 17 October 2026, accompanied by a business delegation. According to the ministry, the visit aims to strengthen political relations, support Slovak exports and open up new opportunities for trade, investment and technological cooperation.
The mission in Australia comprises 27 companies and institutions, including the University of Žilina, the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO) and the Export-Import Bank of the Slovak Republic.
According to information provided to journalists by Slovakia’s Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, more than 240 Slovak companies currently export to Australia, and bilateral trade is growing. Total trade turnover reached approximately €396 million in 2025. Cars account for almost three-quarters of Slovakia’s total exports to Australia.
Source: TASR
