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Slovakia Regrets Sweden's Decision to Close Embassy
Thursday 21 January 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, January 21 (TASR) - Slovakia expressed regret over Sweden's decision to close its embassy in Slovakia, according to a Slovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement Thursday in reaction to Sweden's decision to close its embassies in six countries, including Slovakia, in the name of austerity.
Other countries facing closure of the Swedish embassy are Bulgaria, Ireland, Luxembourg, Slovenia as well as Senegal in west Africa. "Within the framework of the close cooperation that exists between the EU-member states, there is scope for developing new forms for maintaining bilateral contacts in future," says Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt.
At the same time Sweden, which opened its embassy in Bratislava in 2004, will open ten new embassies. They will be formed by upgrading diplomatic missions in Albania, Kosovo, Georgia and Moldava, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Mali, Rwanda, Bolivia and Cambodia.
"We want to be where we can make the best possible use of the money that a Swedish presence costs. It is positive that we can use our resources to strengthen Sweden's presence in a number of nearby countries," Bildt is quoted as saying on the internet.
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