Between Fascination and Ignorance: Slovak Political and Economic Attitudes towards China

This chapter discusses Slovak–China relations since 1993 all the way to the present. The Slovak approach towards China is defined by the combination of fascination with the great power and exotic nature of China on the one hand, and the strategic focus on geographically more proximate areas on the other. The country’s diplomacy has respected China as a growing global power and paid the lip service to the importance of developing mutual relations, while at the same time basically ignoring China in the substance of its diplomatic activity. Shortcomings of the Slovak dealings with China will be emphasised as well, with perhaps the greatest one being the lack of knowledge and due attention being paid to China in Slovakia.
Keywords: Slovak–China relations, Slovak foreign policy, China–CEE, China–V4, China–Central Europe relations