Mayor of Košice, František Knapík, received (26.06.2010) the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Slovakia, Pavel Maratovič Kuznecov, at the premises of the Historical Town Hall. It was the first visit of the Russian Ambassador to Košice after his assumption of the ambassadorial position in Slovakia.
The Ambassador was interested not only in the history of the city, but also in current happenings in the city – employment, demographics, and the impact of metallurgical company U.S. Steel on the city environment. The Ambassador also asked about the opinion of the city in relation to extending the wide gauge railway track to Vienna. Mayor Knapík explained that in this case the decision is up to the central bodies and the city does not join the decision making process. “Should the existing corridor be extended, it would bring new job opportunities to Eastern Slovakia”, said Knapík. The Ambassador welcomed the initiative of the city to assess the cooperation with its sister city St. Petersburg and to try to find new contacts. “I recommend contacting the Mayor of St. Petersburg, Mrs. Matvijenko, with the offer to look for new ways of cooperation. I shall be glad to be of assistance to you in further development of the sister-city relationship”, said Ambassador Kuznecov.
Mayor Knapík further informed on preparation of the upcoming Ice Hockey World Championship and on the project Košice 2013 - European Capital of Culture. In this context, the Ambassador mentioned that this project could be a good opportunity to present Russian culture. The Mayor informed the Ambassador about investment projects and opportunities of attracting investors to Košice in cooperation with the Honorary Consulate of the Russian Federation that has its seat in Košice. On this occasion, Mayor Knapík invited the Ambassador to the Košice Invest 2010 conference to be held in October of this year.
The meeting was also attended by the Honorary Consul of the Russian Federation, Ladislav Štefko, with his seat in Košice.
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