Slovakia

But it speaks also to the growth in popularity of right-wing populists, and an emerging battle for young voters.

'New trend'

Slovakia appeared to strike a powerful blow against the populist surge in Europe with the election in March of progressive political newcomer Zuzana Caputova as president.

These are numbers, key and not so key, that will feature in voting for the European Parliament on May 23-36:
427 million

Prime Minister Viorica Dancila, on an official visit to the Slovak Republic, welcomed the fact that the Romanian-Slovak trade has exceeded for the first time the three-billion-euro threshold at the end of 2018.

Today, I wrote to the Prime Ministers of Greece, Spain, Ireland, Portugal, Slovakia and Croatia, as well as to the leaders of EPP parties from these countries, asking to support the efforts of Bulgarian MEPs to extend the time for debates and to work out more balanced and fair measures under the Mobility Package.

This is what Prime Minister Boyko Borisov wrote on Facebook.

Liberal candidate Zuzana Caputova, who criticizes the current government's policy, wins the first round in the presidential election in Slovakia with a great lead. This shows the results after the counting of 99.88 per cent of the votes, the France press reported, quoted by BTA.

The eco-activist, who claims that citizens want change, wins 40.55 per cent of the votes.

This happened on the 30th anniversary of the fall of communism, Beta agency is reporting on Tuesday.

Pompeo said in Bratislava that China and Russia pose a double threat to progress in democracy and free market since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

Slovakia will not support the United Nations pact on the treatment of migrants worldwide, Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini said on Sunday after the European Union summit, reported Reuters. 

President Klaus Iohannis said on Tuesday that UK's withdrawing from the European Union will bring about a diminution in the EU budget, showing that the right solution would be "slightly increased" national allocations.

The head of state welcomed visiting Slovak Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini on Tuesday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Teodor Melescanu participated on Tuesday as guest of honour in the opening of the Slovak diplomacy meeting, on the sidelines of which he had meetings with Slovak PM Peter Pellegrini and his Slovak counterpart Miroslav Lajcak.

Bulgaria is fifth in the EU by GDP growth in the second quarter, after increase of 3.4% on annual basis, according to the initial data of the European Statistical Office Eurostat. For comparison, the GDP grew by 3.6% in the first quarter.