Slovenia to actively help Ukraine with preparations for accession negotiations on regional policy
Minister Jevšek and First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oleksandr Korniyenko | Author Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development
The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development hosted the Ukrainian delegation, led by Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine Oleksii Riabykin, between 10 and 14 November 2025.
The goal of the visit was to facilitate Ukraine’s preparations for the EU accession negotiation process under negotiation chapter 22 ‘Regional Policy and Coordination of Structural Instruments’.
The visit featured a series of in-depth workshops that brough together Slovenian experts and Ukrainian officials and focused on the exchange of Slovenia’s experience and best practices in cohesion policy implementation. The discussions put spotlight on the setting up of structural funds management models, the application of the principles of partnership and multilevel governance, and the implementation of Interreg programmes and macroregional strategies.
State Secretary Srečko Đurov hosted the working visit on Wednesday, thus continuing the dialogue that was launched at the Slovenian-Ukrainian Cooperation Forum in May in Lviv this year. In his introductory remarks, State Secretary stressed: ''The cooperation forum back in May marked the start of our trust-building efforts and we will work to ensure that trust is the foundation of our successful cooperation. Today's workshops are a testament to our commitment to sharing Slovenia's experience and fostering partnerships between the territorial communities of Ukraine and municipalities of Slovenia, which aligns with the objectives of the memorandum we signed.''
The visit reaffirmed the strong partnership between the two countries that was recently further deepened by the signing of memorandum on cooperation between the Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development of the Republic of Slovenia and the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine. The memorandum aims to strengthen bilateral relations and sets out closer cooperation in regional development, decentralization, and support to recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine.
As part of the official high-level visit, Minister for Cohesion and Regional Development Dr Aleksander Jevšek held talks with First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oleksandr Korniyenko.
Minister Jevšek said: ''Slovenia fully supports Ukraine on its path to the European Union. Cohesion policy played a major role in Slovenia's transformation and development, and we are proud to share the lessons we learned along the way with our Ukrainian friends. Trust we have built is the foundation of our future cooperation and the partnerships between the regions and municipalities of our countries we will establish together.''
The visit was carried out in partnership with the Centre for European Perspective as part of a broader effort of the Republic of Slovenia to help Ukraine build back better and advance European integration.