A senior politician in landlocked Slovakia has called for the creation of a national shipping line.
Peter Durcek, state secretary for transport of the Slovak National Party, has proposed the idea. His nationalist party is the junior partner in a three-party ruling coalition.
The government has adopted the idea with the line slated to start as early as 2020. Durcek had earlier won government approval to push ahead with the creation of a national airline.
The government’s recently unveiled infrastructure programme includes the modernization and development of ports on the Danube and improvement of navigability on the river.
According to Durcek, the project could also be linked a shipping development project of the Vah River, which is currently only navigable for small ships.
The country’s transport ministry expects to obtain funding from the EU to support the development of these shipping projects.
