INTERVIEW/Boost defense budgets to counter Russian threats: Slovak politician

Taipei, Aug. 5 (CNA) Former Slovak Foreign Minister and runner-up in Slovakia's 2024 presidential election Ivan Korčok said Tuesday that increasing defense spending is a "responsible approach" to protecting national sovereignty in the face of Russian aggression, arguing that national security must take precedence over concerns about competing budget priorities.

Korčok, now vice chair of Slovakia's opposition Progressive Slovakia party, also told CNA that his party hopes to deepen ties with Taiwan and cooperate on Ukraine's postwar reconstruction if it returns to power.

In an interview with CNA, Korčok was asked about an argument frequently made by Taiwan's opposition lawmakers against significantly increasing defense spending -- that doing so would reduce funding for economic development and social welfare.

He said the geopolitical landscape has fundamentally changed since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and that "security matters most now."

"There is nothing without security," he said.

Korčok also rejected the notion that governments must choose between defense spending and domestic priorities.

"I believe a responsible approach is to show leadership," he said. "By increasing defense at this moment, you are in fact protecting the very essence of your state, which is its sovereignty."

His fellow Progressive Slovakia lawmaker Štefan Kišš, an economist by training, said his government should focus on growing the economy rather than worrying about limited fiscal resources.

"When there is more income, there is more money to distribute to everybody," Kišš said, adding that his party would pursue stronger pro-growth economic policies if it comes to power.

He said that was also one of the reasons he and Korčok were visiting Taiwan.

"We want to leave this message that we want to improve our relations in terms of economic cooperation," Kišš said.

Korčok served as Slovakia's foreign minister from 2020 to 2022.

He announced his candidacy for the 2024 Slovak presidential election in August 2023 and advanced to the runoff against Peter Pellegrini, ultimately losing with 46.87 percent of the vote on April 6, 2024.

He joined the Progressive Slovakia party in November 2024.

Korčok is making his first visit to Taiwan primarily to attend the Ketagalan Forum, a one-day event held Tuesday and jointly organized by Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research to discuss Indo-Pacific security.

Asked about his impressions of Taiwan, Korčok said the visit had given him a firsthand understanding of the Taiwanese people's determination "to protect your right and your people's freedom to decide how the country will be run."

He also said that if his party returns to power, it would reverse Slovakia's current pro-Russian policy direction and step up support for Ukraine.

Once peace returns to Ukraine, Slovakia -- which shares a border with the country -- hopes to work closely with Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific partners on Ukraine's reconstruction, he added.