The gentle melodies of the pipa, erhu and guzheng floated through the air as guests wrapped freshly made zongzi and tried their hand at Chinese calligraphy. In mid-June this year, Chinese students joined local lovers of Chinese culture at the Confucius Institute in Bratislava, Slovakia, to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, one of China's oldest and most cherished traditions.

"More Slovak friends are welcome to visit China and see for themselves the country's developmental vitality and cultural charm," said Chinese Ambassador to Slovakia Cai Ge, adding that such visits are now much easier than ever.

Since November 2024, China has granted a unilateral visa-free entry for Slovak ordinary passport holders for business, tourism, family visits and transit, and later extended the policy through the end of 2026. Welcoming the move, Slovak Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Juraj Blanar said it would serve as a very important tool to boost tourism and deepen business cooperation between the two countries, particularly amid global challenges.

The interactions reflect a broader trend in bilateral relations, where China and Slovakia have steadily expanded people-to-people exchanges, strengthening public support for the long-term development of partnership.

Education builds lasting bridge

Education has become one of the strongest pillars of China-Slovakia people-to-people cooperation.

The Chinese and Slovak education ministries signed a bilateral agreement on bilingual education this January, further strengthening institutional support for educational cooperation. One of the most notable examples can be found in the historic central Slovak city of Banska Bystrica, where Chinese is now taught as an official language of instruction at Mikulas Kovac Secondary School, carrying the same academic weight and assessment standards as Slovak.

Beyond language instruction, educational cooperation between the two countries has also created broader opportunities for academic collaboration and cultural exchange, helping more Slovaks gain a deeper understanding of China.

Established in 2007 at the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, the Confucius Institute was the first of its kind in Slovakia. It now operates two Confucius Classrooms and 11 teaching centers, has trained more than 8,000 students and organized cultural activities that have recorded over 50,000 attendances.

By signing an agreement to establish the China Culture Communication Center, Ningbo University of Finance and Economics and Bratislava University of Economics and Management marked the 10th anniversary of their partnership in June.

The center will provide cultural exchanges and comparative studies besides language education, while also offering training programs for employees of Chinese enterprises operating in Slovakia.

Over the past decade, the two universities have leveraged the co-founded Silk Road College to exchange 94 students and more than 40 faculty members, as the cooperation has also expanded to talent-training programs to prepare professionals for Chinese-invested enterprises in Slovakia.

Cultural exchanges broaden mutual understanding

As educational ties continue to grow, cultural exchanges have added another dimension to the relationship, bringing the Chinese and Slovak peoples closer through film, music and the arts.

The International Chinese Language Day, as well as the 2026 Chinese Film Festival was held in April at the Slovak National Gallery in Bratislava, drawing nearly 200 guests from government, cultural and academic circles.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Slovak Culture Ministry International Cooperation Director Branislav Salat recalled the decades-long bilateral ties, saying "culture has always been one of the most important bridges connecting our two countries."

The event featured young Chinese and Slovaks reciting the classical Chinese poem "Thoughts on a Tranquil Night" in Chinese, Slovak and English, and the screening of "A Tapestry of a Legendary Land," a dance drama inspired by a renowned Chinese painting masterpiece from the Song Dynasty (960–1279). Four other contemporary Chinese films were also screened during the week-long festival, with several showings fully booked, reflecting growing local interest in Chinese cinema.

In September 2025, China Media Group, together with the Chinese Embassy in Slovakia and Slovakia's Ministry of Culture, launched the Slovak-language version of the documentary "L.E. HUDEC," which tells the story of Laszlo Hudec, the Slovak-born architect whose landmark buildings helped shape Shanghai's skyline in the first half of the 20th century.

Broadcast in prime time on Slovakia's national television, the documentary not only introduced audiences to Hudec's architectural legacy but also shed light on the deep historical connections between the two peoples, Ambassador Cai said.

Where cities connect, friendship grows

While government-to-government cooperation is expanding, local partnerships have increasingly translated diplomatic ties into practical collaboration, creating new opportunities in education, tourism, scientific research and youth exchanges.

Shanghai and Slovakia's Bratislava Self-Governing Region signed friendship city agreements in 2003 and celebrated the 20th anniversary of the partnership in 2023. More recently, cooperation has spread across different parts of both countries.

During a visit to Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province, in 2025, the mayor of the Slovak town of Brezno reached a series of agreements with Chinese partners covering tourism promotion, education and sports. Local tourism authorities signed a memorandum of understanding, while schools and universities agreed to expand educational exchanges and explore joint degree programs.

At the seventh China-Central and Eastern European Countries Local Leaders' Meeting, held in Jinan, east China's Shandong Province, in May, participants expressed hope for more dialogue, reciprocal visits and practical cooperation between China and Slovakia.

Among those helping turn that vision into reality is Slovak agricultural scientist Miroslava Kacaniova, who has maintained long-term research partnerships with Chinese institutions including Shandong University and Zhejiang University. 

"China's advances in smart technologies can complement Slovakia's expertise in agricultural research," she noted. "Together, we can address shared challenges such as climate change and food security."