Read President Peter Pellegrini’s address in full.
Dear Slovak women and men, fellow citizens,
Allow me, first of all, to wish you all a peaceful New Year and good health throughout the whole of 2026. May you be surrounded by people you love, whom you can rely on and who support you in difficult times. May you experience as many pleasant and joyful moments as possible throughout the year — moments that will be a source of inner happiness and contentment.
At the same time, I would like to wish the Slovak Republic all the very best on the occasion of its national holiday and the 33rd anniversary of its establishment.
Dear fellow citizens,
We have just come through a demanding year that brought many turbulent moments on the domestic scene as well as dramatic developments in international relations.
For people in Slovakia, the central theme of the year was the continued consolidation of public finances, with all its consequences for everyday life. Consolidation is always painful and unpleasant, and for ordinary people it often means a reduction in their standard of living. Many rightly ask whether the government has found the best possible way to stabilise the economy, if it is necessary to keep searching for ever more cost-cutting measures. The reality, however, is that the situation is complicated by a slowing economy not only in Slovakia but also across the developed world, which limits the creation of better-paid opportunities and stifles economic growth.
Nor did the political situation give us much cause for optimism last year. The governing coalition did not avoid further media disputes and mutual attacks, despite having promised before the elections to put an end to this style of governance. The opposition loudly and sharply criticised every single government measure, but only rarely offered a better solution. Confrontation between the two camps reached unprecedented levels when, towards the end of the year, physical scuffles, personal insults and verbal attacks occurred in parliament to an extent never before seen in Slovakia.
Voters of the governing coalition are still waiting for the fulfilment of the government’s main promise — that they would live better, more peacefully and more safely. Voters of the opposition, meanwhile, ask whether improving the situation in Slovakia will be possible through criticism alone, and whether opposition parties will once again fall victim to serious internal disputes, signs of which are already visible today.
The result of this situation is deepening tension in our society and a growing level of hatred that seems to know no bounds. Politics has become such a divisive force that it has directly affected our families, friendships and workplace atmosphere. Politicians on both sides are well aware of this growing pressure, yet instead of striving to unite and calm society, they incite even more strained and negative emotions. They do not hesitate to insult not only their political rivals but even their voters — and that is absolutely unacceptable in a democracy.
Faced with the hatred pouring out above all from social networks, but also from television screens and websites, many people feel frustrated. In their own difficult life situations, they easily succumb to the impression that people with different opinions are to blame for everything — and the cauldron of hatred boils ever more intensely.
Nor did developments abroad give us much reason for optimism last year. For almost four years now, people have been dying every day in Ukraine — not only soldiers by the hundreds or thousands on the battlefield, but also innocent women, children and the elderly in the ruins of Ukrainian villages and cities. The international community has so far failed to find not only an agreement, but even a basic direction for how this conflict should end.
The European Union is facing ever greater challenges, as it is unable to agree on many strategic questions concerning its future, while increasingly becoming a victim of a trade war with the United States, China’s rapid economic advance, and the most significant changes to the global order since the Second World War.
Dear fellow citizens,
I sincerely wish that we may experience a better year in 2026 than the one just past. It will not be easy, because none of what we wish for in the New Year will happen by itself. Our lives can improve only through the contribution of each and every one of us — through every skilled pair of hands and every open mind.
One of the great figures of our history, Milan Rastislav Štefánik, taught us: “We must live for one another, because the happiness of individuals grows in proportion to how much it spreads around them.” I believe that we all care about Slovakia prospering and becoming an ever better place to live — and that we will do our utmost together in the new year to achieve this goal.
In the economic sphere, unfortunately, we will not avoid the continued consolidation of public finances. This recovery carries an economic cost and it will not be easy to maintain social and political harmony in society. It will require responsible behaviour from politicians, the media and the professional community.
I therefore strongly appeal for common sense to prevail in discussions on this serious issue, rather than negative emotions. Consolidation is literally a paradise for the biggest populists, who come up with solutions that sound attractive but are economically absurd and would ruin Slovakia within a few years. Of course, it is necessary to point out cases where, despite consolidation, the state wastes taxpayers’ money or hampers economic growth.
Let us not, however, go to extremes and label every item of state spending on standard operations or investments as a scandal. I therefore call for a responsible approach not only from politicians but also from the media, so that this issue does not become yet another engine of hatred and unnecessarily emotional confrontation.
In foreign policy, Slovakia is unfortunately too small a player to significantly influence the most crucial decisions of the world’s great powers. Yet Slovakia can always stand on the side of peace, cooperation and consensus. It can always be a reliable member of the most important international communities, such as the European Union and the North Atlantic Alliance, while at the same time proudly and consistently defending its national interests. Let us not fall into the illusion that someone else will do this for us — if we do not articulate the needs and interests of the Slovak Republic as part of our shared responsibility, those needs and interests will not be respected.
Ladies and gentlemen,
At first glance, the situation in Slovakia seems to be in the hands of politicians — but that is not entirely true. Each of us can either accept or reject the offer made by political parties. Slovakia is a democratic country in which citizens decide the fate of politicians through elections. Already this autumn, we will elect our mayors, city mayors and regional governors. Let us not allow ourselves to be deprived of this opportunity; on the contrary, let us take an interest in what is happening in our municipality, town or region, and decide on the basis of results, not promises. The right to vote is the most powerful weapon people have in a democratic country — and when faced with it, every politician is powerless and must humbly accept the decision of the citizens.
People have every opportunity to exert pressure on politicians to behave responsibly, decently and to fulfil the promises they have made. And people have the power to reject the vulgarity and mutual slander that many politicians offer them — and thus clearly signal that they desire a different kind of politics: a politics of reconciliation, cohesion and peace.
If I speak about politics, I have one wish and one request for the New Year: let us not allow politics to intrude into our lives to the extent that it does today. Politics does not deserve to be the dominant category of our lives. It does not deserve to destroy relationships within families, friendships or workplaces. Politicians deserve neither our love nor our hatred. They should simply do their job, the primary purpose of which must be to improve people’s lives — not to stage political circuses or engage in brawls in parliament.
Hatred-driven and divisive politics must not lead us to look down with disdain on all those who hold a different opinion or are simply different. Let us therefore remember the message of the Holy Father Francis to Slovakia: never look down on another person — except when we are bending down to offer them a helping hand.
Let us calmly reject politics that leads to arrogance and contempt for others. Let us reject social networks wherever they spread hatred. I firmly believe that in the coming year the government will take concrete steps to implement my proposal to protect our children and young people much more effectively from the harms of social networks — even at the cost of limiting access to them up to a certain age.
Social networks have normalised the insulting of others and the denigration of differing opinions. I deeply regret that many people are willing to praise, glorify or even justify the most vulgar attacks. If we continue down this path, Slovak society will gradually lose something that for centuries formed the natural foundation of its values: solidarity, helping one another, intergenerational responsibility, humanity and decency towards one another. These were qualities that characterised us for many years, instilled in us by our parents and on which we were raised.
If we lose this struggle — if we lose the daily battle against hatred — it will also mean the loss of our own Slovak identity. Yet I still feel strong hope when I look at the majority of people who have not given up this fight for decency and who live their everyday lives in accordance with the values of their parents and grandparents.
I have one more great wish for the New Year: that even in these difficult times we do not succumb to total negativity and that we learn to appreciate the good and beautiful things to which we have somehow stopped paying attention.
Let us freely criticise the situation in Slovakia when something is not right. Everyone has the right to such criticism and may express it publicly and in the squares. But let us not forget that our homeland is still one of the safest countries in the world, and that citizens of many developed states could genuinely envy us the safe journeys of children to school or safe walks through Christmas markets.
Let us criticise when important projects are built too slowly, but let us also allow ourselves to appreciate it when — albeit after a long time — a new hospital, a motorway section or a renovated school is added in Slovakia. Let us be rightly critical, but also bear in mind that, unlike in many developed countries, healthcare and education remain accessible to broad sections of the population and their quality is gradually improving. Let us remember that we have high-quality food, excellent drinking water and beautiful nature that the whole world could envy.
Not everything in our country is good, but it certainly cannot all be dismissed with the claim that one must leave Slovakia because everything elsewhere is better. We can live anywhere in the world, but we have only one home, one homeland and one native land — with the values, roots and traditions with which we grew up.
Slovak women and men, dear fellow citizens,
Let us wish ourselves good health and plenty of physical and mental strength throughout the new year.
Let us wish ourselves inner peace within each of us, which will allow us to see our lives in brighter colours and provide us with life energy.
Let us wish that we may sincerely rejoice each day in life’s small pleasures — in a pleasant conversation, a kind meeting or a good person. That we may cherish the health of our parents, the academic progress of our children, and our own everyday achievements at work.
Let us wish that in 2026 we continue to respect truth, facts, expertise and scientific knowledge, and that we do not fall prey to conspiracies and uncertainty that someone may try to artificially instil in us.
Let us wish peace for the whole of Slovakia, so that together we can focus on what truly matters for our future. Let us not needlessly feed what is insignificant and only robs us of the joy of life. And let us not allow our own lives to be destroyed by hatred spread by those who have nothing to offer people except malice.
Let us sincerely wish for peace throughout the world, and above all in Ukraine, where for almost four years hundreds of thousands have been dying on the battlefield, and where — despite all international efforts to date — innocent women, children and the elderly continue to suffer.
I believe that the past year of contrasts and negativity will be followed by a new year of calm, peace and prosperity. I believe that from the positive stories of people in Slovakia we will carry into the New Year hope, understanding and respect for others.
May each and every one of you prosper, may the Slovak Republic prosper, and may we as a nation grow closer to one another than we have been so far. May God help us in this.
