Xi, Slovak President Pellegrini hold talks

Summary

President Xi Jinping met with Slovak President Peter Pellegrini at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on the morning of July 28, 2026. Xi highlighted the deep friendship between China and Slovakia, which elevated bilateral relations to a strategic partnership in 2024,

and outlined four priorities: strengthening strategic mutual trust, deepening mutually beneficial cooperation, enhancing people-to-people ties,

and upholding international fairness and justice. Pellegrini praised China's development achievements, reaffirmed Slovakia's firm commitment to the One-China principle, and expressed interest in boosting cooperation in trade,

AI, new energy, and other fields,

while actively promoting the healthy development of China-EU relations.

Commentary

The strategic partnership upgrade, focusing on AI and new energy cooperation, could reshape supply chains in Central and Eastern Europe. For NZ SMEs, harmonisation of technical standards between China and the EU may lower compliance costs for Kiwi tech firms exporting to China. However, as Slovakia is a key automotive manufacturing hub, the expansion of Chinese carmakers could squeeze market share for NZ small-component suppliers in Europe.

Volkswagen and other European automakers are accelerating electrification; Slovakia's adoption of Chinese battery technology presents opportunities for NZ lithium exporters to monitor supply chain restructuring.

Keywords: Xi Jinping, Slovakia, President Pellegrini, talks, strategic partnership, Belt and Road, artificial intelligence, new energy, China-EU relations, cooperation

Summary in Chinese | 摘要

2026年7月28日上午，国家主席习近平在北京人民大会堂同斯洛伐克总统佩列格里尼举行会谈。习近平指出中斯友谊深厚，2024年关系提升为战略伙伴关系，强调下阶段重点做好巩固战略互信、深化互利合作、增进民心相通、捍卫国际公平正义四方面工作。佩列格里尼高度评价中国发展成就，表示斯方坚定奉行一个中国原则，愿在经贸、人工智能、新能源等领域加强合作，并积极推动欧中关系健康发展。

Commentary in Chinese | 评论

中斯提升战略伙伴关系，聚焦AI、新能源等合作，或重塑中东欧供应链。对NZ SME而言，一方面，中欧技术标准协调可能降低新科技企业出口中国市场的合规成本；另一方面，斯洛伐克作为汽车制造重镇，中国车企扩张或挤占新西兰中小零部件商在欧洲的份额。VW等欧企加速电动化，斯方引入中国电池技术，NZ锂矿出口企业可关注供应链重构机会。

关键词: 习近平, 斯洛伐克, 佩列格里尼, 会谈, 战略伙伴关系, 一带一路, 人工智能, 新能源, 中欧关系, 合作

Source: Embassy of the People's Republic of China in New Zealand