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Presents an account from 1761 regarding the role of the Indians in the rivalry among France, Spain and England. Account of Indian nations inhabiting the area between Virginia and the Mississippi river basin; Advantage of continued trade with the Indians.

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The year 2005 was unique for Slovakia’s foreign policy. It was the first year of a full fledged membership in the Euro-Atlantic structures. While 2004 was a year of identification of the post-integration foreign policy priorities, the year 2005 can be characterized as the first year of their implementation. The ambition of the Yearbook is – at the appropriate level and with the possibility of identifying perspective trends – to look for the answers to new coherences that, in a broader European context, are most topical for Slovakia. Twelve authors attempted to find the answer to questions how Slovakia implemented its new priorities in the new environment. This edition of the Yearbook focused on five foreign policy issues characterizing the foreign policy development in 2005, such as the EU and NATO membership, Slovakia’s activities within international organizations and concrete implementation of the foreign policy priorities. The first chapter focuses on Slovakia’s membership in the EU. Aneta Világi, the analyst of the European Integration research program at RC SFPA, deals with the topic of discourse on the EU Constitutional Treaty. She concentrates especially on development of the EU Constitutional Treaty ratification process in Slovakia as well as the impact of the unsuccessful ratification in the Netherlands and France on its further development. In conclusion she suggests for the Slovak diplomacy to use the stagnation period to form its own priorities in case the discussion on further development after the unsuccessful ratification is open. Vladimír Bilčík, the Head of the European Integration research program at RC SFPA, examines the official standpoints of Slovakia towards the EU enlargement and focuses on the main points of discussion on further enlargement in 2005, including the issue of absorption capacity. The second chapter is devoted to the security policy. It is open by an article of the analyst of the Center for European and North-Atlantic Affairs Vladimír Tarasovič. He assesses the key events or changes from the point of view of the EU and NATO. Vladimír Tarasovič also analyzed the most significant security policy documents adopted by the Slovak Government in 2005. The reflection of the mentioned document in practice was analyzed by Miroslav Kysel, an analyst from the Slovak Foreign Policy Association. The analysis of Ivo Samson, Head of the International Security research program at RC SFPA, opens the third chapter of the Yearbook. In his analysis, he focuses on the candidacy and preparation of the Slovak Republic for the UN Security Council membership as well as on the fundamentals, principles, priorities and possible dilemmas of Slovakia’s activities in UN SC. Peter Lizák of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic takes a more detailed look at Slovakia’s current performance and the future prospects in OSCE. The issues in Central Europe are analyzed by Tomáš Strážay, Head of the Central and South-eastern Europe research program. He assesses the key points as well as the problematic issues playing a significant role within the Visegrad Four, the Central European Initiative and Regional Partnership. Tomáš Strážay also attempts to determine the fields of cooperation which the individual groupings could realize in the short as well as medium-term perspective. The fourth chapter assesses implementation of the main foreign policy priorities such as Ukraine and the Western Balkans. Alexander Duleba, director of the RC SFPA, focuses on the relations with Ukraine. He considers the years 2004 and 2005 a breakthrough in the approach towards the Ukraine considering the development of Slovak-Ukraine relations. Moreover, he stresses that only in 2005 did the outlines of Slovakia’s post-integration eastern policy meet the interests of Slovakia, which could significantly contribute to the common EU and NATO policies. The contribution of Eliška Sláviková of People in Peril reflects on the base forming the decision to include the Western Balkans into the foreign policy priorities of Slovakia. It also reflects the practical realization of the policy towards the Balkans. She assess Slovak bilateral relations with the individual countries of the Balkans as well as relations at the EU level and attempts to answer the question where Slovakia could see its working space in the Balkans. Slovakia’s Foreign Policy Tools is the name of the last thematic chapter in the Yearbook. Naturally, this chapter begins with the analysis of the Slovak development assistance as the main bilateral tool of Slovakia’s foreign policy. Peter Hulényi of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the SR takes a closer look at the Slovak ODA. He analyzes the 2005 success of the Slovak ODA in more detail and, rather than talking about the failures, he points out the challenges Slovak Aid will face in 2006. Foreign economic policy is reviewed by Tomáš Taraba of Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency. The public opinion on foreign policy issues is traditionally the field which Oľga Gyárfášová of Institute for Public Affairs covers in the Yearbook. Her research outlines that there was a significant positive change in the public opinion on Slovakia’s performance in the field of foreign policy. Besides these analyses, the Yearbook includes a chronology of the most important events in the Slovak foreign policy in 2005 and selects political documents and other information (e.g. the structure and representatives of the MFA SR, a list of diplomatic missions and representatives of SR abroad, the SR diplomatic bodies, army missions abroad etc.). I strongly believe that all those interested in the foreign policy of Slovakia and its development in 2005 will find this publication useful.

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Presented the third volume of the Yearbook of Foreign Policy of the Slovak Republic 2001 offers the reader a presentation and summary of foreign policy of the Slovak Republic of 2001 from the point of view of its prime actors, expert and analytical view of the issue complemented by topical data of practical character as chronology of the most important foreign policy activities of the SR in 2001, structure of the State Administration bodies acting in a sphere of international relations and European integration, and others are. This structure of the publication known from previous volumes is based on needs to strengthen a tradition of regular assessment of the whole complex of Slovak foreign policy in all its levels with regard to a wide basis of its actors. It is confirmed also by an interest rendered to publication of the Yearbook of Foreign Policy of the Slovak Republic 1999 and the Slovak and English versions of the Yearbook of Foreign Policy of the Slovak Republic 2000 as well as to holding two annual evaluation conferences where representatives of central bodies of the State Administration, political parties, scientific research and academic centres and non- governmental organisations took part. The Evaluation Conference of the foreign policy of the Slovak Republic for 2001 held under a title Slovakia and its Integrational Prospects was an important contribution to more effective use of intellectual and social potential of the Slovak Republic focused on the foreign policy and international relations field. Its specifics lay in the fact that it was hold in a year of parliamentary elections to the National Council of the Slovak Republic. This reflected not only in its content but in participation in the Conference as well. In an attempt to give a wide space to a political discussion besides governmental representatives and representatives of relevant committees of the National Council of the SR delegates of opposition parliamentary subjects presented their view of Slovak foreign policy of the last year. Presence of research and academic circles and think tanks representatives and foreign policy students was not less important if we concern building of institutional background and human capacities and widening and strengthening foreign policy community in the SR. Interest and entry of young people, students into active participation in similar events is one of bases of a sound development of foreign policy community in Slovakia. The facts assure us about meaningfulness of our endeavour and the need to continue in organizing similar conferences and publishing Yearbooks of Foreign Policy of the Slovak Republic. The Konrad-Adenauer Stiftung financially supported the Conference, as in previous years. We most of all thank to Frank Spengler, the director of its office for Slovakia and his deputy Agáta Pešková. It would not be able to hold the event without a restless and self-sacrificing work of the SIIS employees. Our thanks for assistance in organisation of the Conference belong also to L'udmila Lipková, the dean of the Faculty of International Relations of the University of Economy and to students of the Faculty. Publishing of the Yearbook of the Foreign Policy of the Slovak Republic 2001 was financial supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic. It would not be possible to publish the Yearbook without mature work of Katarína Žáková, David Oršula and Marek Kalma. Special thanks belong to consultant of this publication Štefan Šebesta.

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Presents the text of resolutions passed by the US Senate and considered in the US House of Representatives on March 3, 1863, opposing foreign mediation in the United States' internal affairs. Congress' refusal to brook foreign interference in the nation's Civil War; Background of European involvement in the Southern states' rebellion.

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The Czechoslovak attempt for reform of Socialism in 1968 has, without any hesitation, become one of the most important events in the history of the common state of Slovaks and Czechs. Its birth, the gradual maturation and hopes for a better future were interrupted by the brutal invasion of five Warsaw Pact armies, and of course subjected to the wings of the Soviet Union in August 1968. Moscow, with help of tanks, regained control over the industrially mostly developed country of its Eastern Bloc. Czechoslovakia would ounce again become the example of an ideal satellite. The Czechoslovak attempt for reform of Socialism started during the time when the great powers, the Soviet Union and the United States of America, were trying to come to an agreement in détente politics. It proved to be unequivocal that this policy preserved the state from the Cold War. One of its main features was the mutual acceptance of the status quo by the great powers, whereas both great powers, Moscow and Washington, avoided interfering in the internal affairs of the Blocs. At first Moscow blessed the effort of the Czechoslovak revival, but as soon as Moscow evaluated this situation as the one that could violate the unity of its empire, it has decided to put an end of this process. Even if it might have initially seemed that Moscow hesitated to use its armed forces, well aware of the idleness and the lack of interest of the United States, Moscow finally did commit its armed forces, airplanes and tanks together with Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and East Germany. Its one and only task was to change Czechoslovakia to become an obedient foot-soldier and a strong component of the Eastern Bloc. Many books on Czechoslovak - or better to say Dubãek’s “Socialism with a human face” have been written. These books focuses mainly on internal development and attitudes of the Soviet Union and its European satellites. The Slovak, Czech and also foreign historiography have achieved quite amazing results regarding this topic. There are also many documents published in book form. Without any doubt, memories of the participants of that period have appeared in Slovakia and the Czech Republic after the “Velvet Revolution” from the beginning of 1990s. The purpose of this paper was not to provide a revision or summary of up-to-present available literature, but rather provide the attitude from a certain point of view. It is obvious from the title of the book that the main focus of this essay is the attitude of the United States of America, but also those of the West and the United Nations Organization. In reality there has not been such a compiled publication on the market until now. The attitude of the United States towards the Czechoslovak reform and towards its violent termination was influenced by several external factors. The most dominant ones were, for example, the Vietnam War, the effort to achieve the bipolar détente politics, and also the unimportance of a small Socialist country (Czechoslovakia) in the horizon of the American interest. When mentioned factors are taken into consideration, it is no wonder that the American attitude towards Czechoslovakia and its development after the year 1968 was as it was. Simply put, it was passive, unenthusiastic and uninterested. However, the American Administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson verbally accepted the Czechoslovak liberalism; but on the other hand, it did not help it at all. The United States publicly deplored the August invasion and the subsequent occupation of Czechoslovakia, but otherwise it did not interfere within the affairs. The United Sates evaluated the situation as the affair of the Eastern Bloc, which was not focused against the interests of the United States and the Soviet Union. However, the American attitude was well known as early as the invasion had been planned. This was also the reason why the Soviet Union acted as it did. The Soviet Union knew for sure that nobody would interfere in its policy of how to solve its internal problem. A similar reaction came also from the countries of the West. The verbal disagreement with the aggression was perceived more as a “good point” for the evaluation of the events in the future. The attitude of nonintervention is also not surprising, because of the fact that the structures of armed forces arrangement of the Atlantic Pact were only the “extended” hand of the main power, The United States of America. What was the role of the United Nations Organization? Actually, it declared its weakness, “toothlessness” and inability to retrieve injustice of the military conflict. There were no proposed resolutions of the Security Council approved in consequence of the Soviet veto, which should have deplored the invasion of Czechoslovakia at least by declaratory means. Though Czechoslovakia strongly protested via the “mouth” of its Minister of Foreign affairs in the United Nations in New York and asked for immediate troop withdrawal from its territory, Czechoslovakia alone backed out of the public forum very quickly after the strong pressure from Moscow. When investigating this issue, many questions emerge. One of these questions is: Whether Dubãek’s mission of “the human face” could have been successful? When the context of that period, the world politics of the Soviet Union and other external factors are being taken into consideration, the answer is no. Other generations of Slovaks and Czechs would later pay for that.

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