Slovakian Ambassador on a fact-finding mission to Swansea

THE AMBASSADOR of one of the European Union's youngest members has been to Swansea to learn more about Wales' culture, business and ambition.

Lord Mayor of Swansea, Cllr Ioan Richard, welcomed His Excellency Miroslav Wlachovsky, who was on his first visit to Wales since being appointed Slovakia's Ambassador to the UK last year.

And during the visit on March 20, Mr Wlachovsky got the chance to see Wales from its tallest residential property, Swansea's Meridian Tower, during his visit.

Cllr Richard said: "It gave me great pleasure to welcome Mr Wlachovsky to Wales. I'm confident he's returned to London with only good memories of Wales and Swansea.

"We shared with Mr Wlachovsky some of our country's history and he got the chance to see how Swansea is developing its knowledge economy to take advantage of the skills, expertise and investment based around our cutting-edge universities."

Mr Wlachovsky's visit on March 20 started at the National Waterfront Museum of Wales where he got an update on progress Swansea is making in Economic Regeneration from Steve Marshall, Swansea Council's Business Development Manager.

Then he went to Swansea University's Institute of Life Sciences where there was an opportunity to tour one of Britain's cutting edge research centres for science and technology.

And after that there was lunch at the Grape and Olive, the restaurant at the summit of the Meridian Tower boasting unrivalled views of the city and the countryside beyond.

Businessman Nigel Payne, Slovakia's Honorary Consul for Wales, said the Ambassador was delighted to visit Swansea.

He said: "Slovakia has a population of 5.4m and is one of the youngest members states of the EU. It's very outward-looking as well as ambitious for its future.

"Mr Wlachovsky came to Wales to find out more about us and how, as a relatively small region within the EU, we make the most of the opportunities on offer to develop our economy for the 21st century."

Slovakia is one of the new Central European countries formed in the years following the break-up of the Communist Eastern bloc. It peacefully broke away from the former Czechoslovakia in 1993. It joined the EU and Nato in 2004.

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