Since 1999, Slovak embassies have been operating continuously in 48 countries. Currently, Slovakia has 62 embassies (excluding the already announced Australia and Belgium), of which 37 (59%) are located in Europe, 15 in Asia, 6 in the Americas and 4 in Africa. For comparison in 2023 had 91 embassies in the Czech Republic, 87 in Hungary, 83 in Austria, 74 in Finland, 66 in Denmark and 71 in Ireland.
After 1993, embassies were gradually abolished, especially in Africa and Latin America, and Slovakia concentrated on strengthening its multilateral representations (e.g. Permanent Representation to the EU after 2004). However, it is these regions that are in the current diplomatic crosshairs of a number of Western states, which prefer to locate their diplomatic representation rather outside the EU.
“Simply put, Slovakia is not copying the diplomatic trend of comparable, albeit more economically advanced, countries.”
When comparing the share of individual embassies of comparable EU countries in regions of the world, it can be stated that Slovakia has a far greater share of embassies in Europe, in contrast to other countries that focus on Asia or Africa.
It is questionable whether economics and focus influence this trend, but in any case Slovakia is out of line with similar countries in the EU in terms of size and population. Simply put, Slovakia is not copying the diplomatic trend of comparable, albeit more economically advanced, countries. So should Slovakia be present in the new emerging markets?
Share of embassies by continent in 2023 (%). Source: Lowy Institute, Source:European Union
It is true that Slovakia has long prioritised the integration of the Western Balkans into the EU and has therefore gradually located an embassy in every country in the region since 2009, which explains, for example, the presence of a presence in Montenegro, a country of around half a million, and the absence of a presence in Lithuania, a member state of the EU, a country of almost three million. This is also true for the Eastern Partnership region, where Slovakia has gradually opened embassies in Moldova (2013), Georgia (2014), Azerbaijan (2019), and Armenia (2020).
For Slovakia, the Scandinavian model of closing embassies in the EU and opening them in third countries may be a solution. For example, the richer Scandinavian countries have withdrawn from Slovakia in the past decade, with Sweden closing its embassy in Bratislava in 2010, Denmark and Finland in 2014 and Norway in 2023. Instead of Slovakia, Denmark, for example, has focused on more dynamic markets, placing embassies in Myanmar, the Philippines and Nigeria.
However, it should also be taken into account that overall over 80% of Slovakia’s exports go to the EU. It is therefore up to the strategic approach of the government whether Slovakia should territorially diversify its exports (or open more doors for Slovak companies in third countries). Although exports are important, the import of strategic raw materials such as precious elements needed for green transition is now equally important. These elements are found in significant quantities in Latin America, Africa and Asia.
In general, economic diplomacy has so far been rather reactive in terms of the location of embassies in relation to the growth of trade in a given country (the example of Georgia and the United Arab Emirates). Some deviation can be observed so far in the embassies in Yerevan and Baku, with which trade at the time of the location of the embassies was marginal.
Embassy openings are an important topic, especially in economic diplomacy. Especially experienced economic diplomats who have established a network of contacts should open doors where Slovak exporters need them. However, due to the small number of economic diplomats in Slovak embassies, and also due to the sheer understaffing of embassies, this is often problematic.
Author: Filip Šandor, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University Bratislava, EXPORT ANALYTICA
