Slovakia's upcoming parliamentary elections could reduce the country's alignment with the European Union and NATO, but any new government will likely avoid drastic anti-Western moves that could excessively endanger the country's fiscal position and foreign investment. Slovakia will hold an early general election on Sept. 30 following the resignation in May of the center-right, pro-NATO government of former Prime Minister Eduard Heger. Opinion polls show two opposition parties -- the nationalist-populist Direction-Social Democracy (Smer) party of former Prime Minister Robert Fico and the center-left Voice-Social Democracy (Hlas) party of another former Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini -- leading by a wide margin against all four of the parties in the outgoing coalition government. Support for Smer has increased in recent months, while Hlas' popularity has been waning. But the gap between them remains relatively narrow. Against this backdrop, both parties are scouting junior partners for a potential coalition government....
