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China woos Slovakia with AI, robotics pitch as EU trade friction mounts
Bratislava has maintained relatively warm ties with Beijing even as the bloc has toughened its stance on trade
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Carol Yangin BeijingandLaura ZhouPublished: 7:03pm, 28 Jul 2026Updated: 7:51pm, 28 Jul 2026
China and Slovakia should explore cooperation in clean energy, robotics and artificial intelligence, as the European nation navigates growing trade tensions between Beijing and the EU.
That was the message Chinese President Xi Jinping gave to Peter Pellegrini in talks on Tuesday morning as part of the Slovak president’s three-day visit to China, the first by the country’s head of state in 16 years.
Slovakia has relatively warm relations with China, as one of the few EU and Nato members to have established a strategic partnership with Beijing in recent years. Ties were raised to that level during Prime Minister Robert Fico’s visit to Beijing in November 2024.
Pellegrini’s trip comes as Beijing and Brussels edge towards a trade war and relations are strained by China’s perceived support for Russia in the Ukraine war.
02:41EU leaders debate new China trade policy over ‘systemic threat’
Meanwhile, cracks in the transatlantic relationship under the second Trump administration – particularly the president’s “America first” trade policies – have pushed some European nations to recalibrate their relations with China.
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