The Slovak authorities have recorded a sharp increase in interest among Slovaks living abroad in repatriation amid the coronavirus outbreak, with 2,500 requests coming from Britain alone in recent days, stated Slovak Deputy Foreign Minister Martin Klus. "There is such a huge number of them that our consular office is not able to process them all," said Klus in reference to the requests coming from Britain.
Opposition Smer-SD MP Juraj Blanár, chairman of the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee, has proposed that diplomacy students could be involved in the process. "You should involve them like the Health Ministry has done with medical students, who are now manning hotlines to answer questions concerning coronavirus," said Blanár.
Moreover, the state quarantine facilities for Slovaks repatriated from abroad are almost full. In reaction to this situation, the state is discussing with regional authorities the possibility of making available additional facilities, such as university halls of residence, said Slovak Interior Minister Roman Mikulec.
Repatriations are also taking place in the opposite direction, away from Slovakia. On Saturday, Slovak buses departed from Bratislava to transport home 36 French, 40 German and ten Portuguese students who had been in Slovakia as part of the Erasmus programme, according to Didier Rogasik from the French Embassy in Slovakia. The repatriation was carried out in cooperation between the Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Ministry and embassies of the countries in question. The first group of 36 French students departed from Slovakia last week, noted Rogasik.
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