On Friday, President Andrej Kiska made a speech at the concert celebrating the beginning of the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the European Union:

"Good evening dear Guests, Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Good evening, Slovakia. Good evening, Europe.

Each of us has somehow lived through today. Regardless of how we spent it, it was made up of many ordinary things. Commonplace things. Which we usually do every day. Things we have, without being aware of them. But many of them are truly precious. Without them life would be sadder, more difficult, and worse. But we don’t even notice how valuable they are.

On 1 July, 70 years ago, at this time in the evening, people came to the historic building of the Slovak National Theatre for the world famous opera, Tosca. It was obviously a pleasant evening for them. It was a year after the end of the World War and I dare say that the two main things people desired were peace and freedom. Freedom and peace.

We don’t know how many of them already felt concerned. How many of them registered the phrase ‘Iron Curtain’, although soon became its prisoners. Europe was once again divided and people on our side were separated by an iron curtain from freedom, democracy and prosperity. For a very long time.

It is likely that still 30 years ago at this time, few people believed that things could change. That freedom and democracy would once again become a reality. That we would be able to see for ourselves how much we had lost and how much we lagged behind the more fortunate part of Europe. That subsequently we would be able to find out how much we were capable of doing in a short time and go such a long way. That Europe would unite. That we would take our freedom and democracy for granted and that we would gradually also take our membership in the European Union for granted.

Put your hands on your hearts: who of you could have imagined 20 years ago that on 1 July 2016 the first day of the Slovak Presidency of the European Union would be behind us?

Allow me here to express my esteem to all our fellow-citizens, all the citizens of Slovakia who brought this about. This wasn’t and isn’t something that can be taken for granted. This moment is historic and it is your success.

But today I would like to thank also the older countries of the European Union and their citizens who helped us, Slovakia, on our road. Thank you, friends.

Today Slovakia took over the honorable duty of the Presidency of the European Union, and we would definitely have been happier if it hadn’t happened in this, called by many, crisis situation. Or crisis of confidence in the European Union. And especially so soon after one of the member states decided to leave us.

This has made us uneasy, sad, surprised, maybe also tired because of the unclear notions of how to do things better... maybe also because we have been fortunate. We have been fortunate to experience a relatively long period in Europe where, in principle, things have gone well. When the freedom of a united Europe has become commonplace. And its success has become commonplace. For a time it even seemed as if history had ended and that nothing at home in Europe or our immediate surroundings was seriously threatening us. And that we would overcome potential problems with ease, almost unnoticed or effortlessly. Nobody would lose anything, but everybody would win. All of this seemed a certainty.

But during the last few years things have been looking less certain. Before we all learnt to live together, respect each other and work together, we were faced with problems we simply didn’t expect. And we are only just learning to manage them together. The economic and financial crisis. Problems with the Euro. The wave of refugees and migrants. The old familiar security threat of terrorism.

The European Union remains a splendid and successful project of peace, democracy and prosperity, unprecedented in history. And I don’t think that anybody reasonable can doubt that we in the European Union have sufficient resources and the capacity to manage all imaginable problems. What we need most of all today, urgently, is to renew our trust and confidence. Not only to enjoy success, but to be able to learn to live in such a large family that can manage not only celebrations and feasts, but also misfortunes, errors, mistakes and weaknesses. Everything that is part of everyday life.

Slovakia has prepared useful concrete priorities for our Presidency. But the greatest priority, ambition and contribution we will offer the European Union during the following six months is the services of an honest, fair and sincere mediator. In our search for trust and confidence. Between member states and their interests, for the good of the whole.

Let us be an attentive, patient and empathetic host and moderator, encouraging everyone who speaks about self-reflection and cares about the European Union. I call upon you to add specific ideas to your wishes. We want to help in the mediation of European dialogue in which we all maintain the ability to listen to each other without immediately making judgements.

We want to help by reacting to the stormy emotions across the European Union as people with big hearts, goodwill and wise experience so that we can treat one another tactfully and generously. In order to strengthen the knowledge that we are all responsible for a Europe of peace, democracy, solidarity and dignified, safe lives for all. And that we carry this into the future, and hand over our alliance as a continent of peace, freedom, democracy, solidarity and prosperity to our children in a good condition. We all carry this responsibility.

Not only Brussels. But also Tallinn and Madrid. Prague. Amsterdam and Ljubljana. Rome. Warsaw and Lisbon. Riga. Dublin and Budapest. Nicosia and Copenhagen. Vilnius. Valletta and Helsinki. Athens. Vienna and Stockholm. Zagreb. Luxembourg and Bucharest. Sofia. Paris and Berlin — and Bratislava.

This is definitely not commonplace. This is simply great.

We will manage, Slovakia.
We will manage, European Union."