Prime Minister Golob: "We are paving the way where large countries do not dare or do not wish to"

In his opening remarks, the Prime Minister thanked the heads of Slovenian diplomatic and consular missions for their dedicated work. "I would like to thank you for achieving results through your work and for raising Slovenia's standing in the world. In recent years, I have had the privilege of witnessing how important it is when an ambassador carries out their work, their mission, with heart and soul – and how the results of what may seem like the work of a single person can prove highly significant, contributing to the broader mosaic of successes of the entire country," the Prime Minister said in tribute to the participants.

He went on to emphasise the importance of Slovenia's voice in the international community. "Why should Slovenia make itself heard in the world? I will illustrate the answer with the example of the situation in Gaza. If all European countries, not necessarily the whole world, had taken the same measures against Israel as Slovenia, the carnage would have been stopped by now. The role of small countries is to pave the way where large countries do not dare or do not wish to," he said.

This was also the mission Slovenia took upon itself when it joined the UN Security Council. "With our principled approach, we have shown not only that we do not have double standards in Slovenia, but that we truly believe in the principles of international and humanitarian law. This is an important message that Slovenia has conveyed through diplomacy over the past two years, and I am confident that it will remain embedded in the international community even after our ambassador’s term on the Security Council has ended. We can all be proud of this legacy," he emphasised.

Furthermore, the Prime Minister stressed that Europe is not important in the world in and of itself, but respresents only one of the actors. "If Europe does not change the way it operates, the current approach will lead to it becoming an insignificant player. This applies not only to security issues, but also to economic and technological issues," the Prime Minister made clear, adding that this also calls into question the standard of living in Europe. "Without a competitive economy and advanced technologies, we will not be able to maintain the current standard of living in Europe. That is why I believe it is important for Slovenia, together with like-minded countries in Europe, to address the part of politics that believes that Europe can only be competitive and secure when we have more Europe, and not when we support ideas of sovereignty. In the next term, we will still be here to help Europe not only get back on its feet, but also shine again in all its glory," he said.

The Prime Minister also talked about the situation in the Western Balkans. "In our neighbourhood, we have the turbulent region of the Western Balkans. We have already been active and will have to be even more so in the coming period, namely in terms of how to bring more stability to the Western Balkans through more Europe," he explained.

The Prime Minister wished the heads of Slovenian diplomatic and consular missions every success in their work. "I hope that each of you will think and act proactively, guided by the same principles – that we believe in international law, in political law, and that we are proud of our country," concluded Prime Minister Golob.