News

Prime Minister Janez Janša today received the new Ambassador of the United States to Slovenia, Asel K. Roberts. During the meeting, Prime Minister Janša and Ambassador Roberts confirmed the traditionally good and friendly relations between the two countries and expressed their willingness to further strengthen cooperation in the political, economic and security spheres.

Minister Tone Kajzer participated in the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg for the first time since becoming Minister of Foreign and European Affairs. Ministers discussed Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East and EU-China relations. On the sidelines, Minister Kajzer held multiple bilateral meetings and took part in the Intergovernmental Conference with Montenegro.

Prime Minister Janez Janša met with members of the Fiscal Council and representatives of the Ministry of Finance for a working lunch at Vila Podrožnik.

State Secretary at the Ministry of Local Self-Government, Cohesion and Regional Policy Ivan Meglič took part in the 6th Slovenian Rural Parliament, where he underscored the importance of continuous dialogue with local communities in shaping development policies. The event brought together key stakeholders to discuss the quality of life in rural areas and its importance for balanced development of Slovenia.

Minister for Infrastructure and Energy Jernej Vrtovec visited Žetale today to inspect the consequences of the recent severe storm, which caused extensive damage to transport infrastructure and other public facilities.

Prime Minister Janez Janša, accompanied by Minister of Agriculture Janez Cigler Kralj and President of the Chamber of Agriculture and Forestry of Slovenia Jože Podgoršek, visited Komenda today to assess the aftermath of the severe storm. The damage in Komenda alone amounts to tens of millions of euros, with more than 150 buildings affected. Prime Minister Janša also visited families and farmers affected by the severe storm.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia decided to lift the temporarily reintroduced control at the internal borders with Croatia and Hungary. The government’s decision was announced by Franci Matoz, Minister of the Interior and Public Administration, and Danijel Lorbek, Acting Director General of the Police.

Rok Šimenc, State Secretary at the Ministry of Local Self-Government, Cohesion and Regional Development, and Sofia Alves, Director at the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy, visited the Zasavje region today. They attended the Zasavje 2026 Just Transition Conference and visited the flood-recovery project in Zagorje ob Savi, co-financed by the European Union Solidarity Fund.

At the beginning of the session, the Government was briefed on the situation following yesterday’s storm, which caused extensive damage in many parts of Slovenia. In addition to damage to residential and commercial buildings and infrastructure, the storm completely destroyed crops in some areas and severely affected agriculture.

The University of Primorska will launch a new undergraduate study programme, Innovations in Wood Industry for Sustainable Development, in the 2026/2027 academic year.

At today's press conference, State Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister Vinko Gorenak presented the contents of the proposed Partnership for a Successful Slovenia agreement, through which the Government is inviting opposition parties to participate in the preparation of legislation during the 2026–2030 term.

The economic diplomacy consultations and the Slovenian Global Forum, two key events in the field of internationalisation of the Slovenian economy, brought together representatives from the business world, diplomatic corps and relevant institutions. The consultations were attended by 42 economic advisers working in diplomacy, and the Slovenian Global Forum saw an audience of over 400 people.

Today, the European Commission issued a preliminary positive assessment of the sixth request for payment of funds under the Recovery and Resilience Facility – NextGenerationEU. Slovenia is expected to receive the payment, amounting to €41 million, next month. Following the inflow, Slovenia will have utilised nearly 87% of the available funds.

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tone Kajzer concluded the handover process at the Ministry in a meeting with the former minister, Tanja Fajon. He assumed his duties on 4 June 2026, with the handover taking place the following day.

The central theme of this year's event was how companies can capitalise on Slovenia's reputation, which its athletes help build. Slovenia is playing in the top league on the global stage, and it is up to us to step onto that stage as competitors who have come to win, emphasised Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy, Labour and Sport Anže Logar, in his opening remarks.

The Foreign Ministers of Cape Verde, Costa Rica, Iceland, Singapore, Slovenia and the United Arab Emirates, within the so-called Green Group, are issuing a joint statement on today's World Oceans Day.

Prime Minister Janez Janša today attended the Holy Mass and memorial ceremony at the pit under Macesnova gorica in Kočevski Rog.

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Janez Janša, today attended the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Tivat, Montenegro, where the leaders of the European Union Member States and the Western Balkan countries discussed the further strengthening of cooperation between the European Union and the region.

The Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning, Polona Rifelj, today assumed office. In accordance with the ministry's newly defined remit, responsibilities were handed over to her by the former Minister of Natural Resources and Spatial Planning, Jože Novak, the former Minister of the Environment, Climate and Energy, Bojan Kumer, and the former Minister of Solidarity-Based Future, Simon Maljevac.

An official handover ceremony was held today at the Ministry of Local Self-Government, Cohesion and Regional Development. The outgoing minister, Dr Aleksander Jevšek, formally handed over responsibilities to the new minister, Dr Monika Kirbiš Rojs, who announced upon assuming office that she would immediately continue ongoing work and pursue key development priorities.

Today, a formal handover of duties took place at the Ministry of the Economy, Labour and Sport between the outgoing Minister Matjaž Han and the incoming Minister Dr Anže Logar.

The official transfer of office at the newly unified Ministry of Education, Science and Youth took place in the presence of former Minister of Education Dr Vinko Logaj and former Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation Dr Igor Papič.

The former ministers of the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Public Administration, and the Ministry of Digital Transformation have handed over their duties to the new Minister of the Interior and Public Administration, Franci Matoz.

A handover ceremony took place today at the Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Energy between the outgoing Minister, mag. Bojan Kumer, and the new Minister for Infrastructure and Energy, Jernej Vrtovec.

From 25 to 29 May 2026, Slovenia hosted an interregional workshop entitled Promoting the Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management (the Joint Convention).

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia, headed by Janez Janša, met today at the inaugural session at which several key decisions were taken. The Government appointed the Deputy Prime Ministers and Janja Garvas as Secretary-General of the Government.

Following the 11th extraordinary session of the National Assembly, at which the government’s cabinet was confirmed, Prime Minister Janez Janša and former Prime Minister Dr. Robert Golob carried out the handover of duties.

In cooperation with other ministries, the academic research community and business associations, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the Ministry of Digital Transformation organised the fifth national conference, ‘Artificial intelligence – from vision to trust’, at Jablje Castle. This was the central event for debate on the future development and use of artificial intelligence in Slovenia and internationally.

At today’s press conference, Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob and Deputy Prime Ministers Luka Mesec, Klemen Boštjančič and Matej Arčon reviewed the past term of office. They stressed that, after four years and despite uncertain geopolitical circumstances, Slovenia is a more stable, safer and developmentally stronger country than it was at the beginning of the term. They also highlighted concrete results: preserved public finances, higher wages and pensions, low unemployment, and increased investment in infrastructure, science, development, housing, resilience and local projects.

The reading room and information room of the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia at Poljanska cesta 40 in Ljubljana will operate on summer opening hours from June 15 to August 28, 2025. They will be open Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 14:00. Due to collective leave, the national archives, reading room, and information room will be closed on Friday, June 26.

In line with the program of cooperation with the United States in the field of Science, Innovation, Quantum computing, AI and Space, Ambassador Iztok Mirošič hosted a Fireside chat with a former NASA Astronaut Ronald Sega, an Exhibition titled DELAK: Hardly Noticeable Wave and an informans DELAK: TANK by Slovene producer and artist Aljoša Živadinov Zupančič and Teater DELAK, through which the Embassy of Slovenia connects Science, Arts and Business in Space sector.

The 15th Africa Day International Conference focused on water management and sustainable use of water sources. More than 100 guests, including representatives of the Slovenian business world, members of the African diaspora and diplomats from African countries, attended this event at the level of accredited African ambassadors.

On 1 June 2026, Ambassador Žiga Žarnić assumed the position of Head of the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Slovenia to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). On the same day, Mr. Žiga Žarnić also presented copies of his credentials to the OECD Secretary-General, Mr. Mathias Cormann, and on this occasion also held an introductory meeting.

Ambassador Iztok Mirošič hosted a lunch for the newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to Slovenia, Asel K. Roberts, before her departure to Slovenia.

Slovenia and the United States enjoy good relations, and we will continue to further strengthen our close partnership and friendship.

A celebration marking the 35th National Day of the Republic of Slovenia and Slovenian Armed Forces Day was held on Thursday, May 28th at the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in Washington.

Idrija bobbin lace is the first Slovenian craft and industrial product to receive a protected geographical indication (GI) registered at the European Union level. This landmark registration provides uniform protection across all EU Member States, affirming the close ties between the product and local expertise, tradition and quality.

In the 2025 European financial year, recipients of agricultural funds received a total of €366.4 million.

The latest episode of the government GOVSI podcast features hydrologist Janez Polajnar from the Slovenian Environment Agency, a long-standing expert in monitoring and forecasting hydrological conditions. The conversation focused on the importance of timely warnings, the experience of the August 2023 floods, and adapting to increasingly frequent extreme weather events.

State Secretary Neva Grašič participated in the Informal Meeting of Foreign Ministers (Gymnich) on 27 and 28 May, which focused on three topics: the situation in the wider Middle East region, Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the preparation of a new European security strategy.

The Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, in cooperation with the Slovenian Forestry Institute and the Slovenian Forest Service, organised a meeting of heads of diplomatic missions in Slovenia on forest diplomacy, with a particular focus on the role of forests in sustainable development and climate change mitigation.

At today’s session, the Government adopted an implementation programme for achieving Slovenia’s development goals through investments in science and innovation, as well as amendments to the regulation on inspections, cleaning and measurements on small combustion plants. It also adopted a decision to include the new project BUILD – CitiVERSE – Local Digital Twins in the current Development Programmes Plan 2026–2029.

Many of the measures introduced in Slovenia under the Recovery and Resilience Plan, implemented with the support of EU funds under the Recovery and Resilience Facility – NextGenerationEU, have already been successfully completed or will be by August 2026. The majority of activities under the investment project for the sustainable restoration and revitalisation of cultural heritage have now been completed.

The Republic of Slovenia today successfully issued a €350 million seven-year floating rate bond maturing on 29 May 2033. The issuance responds to expressed demand from domestic investors for government financial instruments with floating interest rates and further contributes to diversifying the sources of financing for the state budget.

Ljubljana is hosting the 25th Regional Meeting of the Member States of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Organised by the OPCW Technical Secretariat in cooperation with the Chemicals Office of the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, the meeting serves as an important regional forum for discussing measures aimed at the complete elimination of chemical weapons.

Today, State Secretary Grašič is attending the General Affairs Council’s regular monthly meeting. Key topics on the agenda include preparations for the June European Council and the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the period 2028–2034.

At today’s correspondence session, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia took note of the Information on the Implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, the Proposal for the Sixth Amendment to the Recovery and Resilience Plan, and the Information on the Closing Process of the Recovery and Resilience Facility.

The Republic of Slovenia (the issuer), rated A2 (stable) / AA (stable) / A+ (stable), has mandated OTP Banka and UniCredit banka Slovenija as joint Lead Managers to lead manage a float rate note (FRN) EUR denominated seven-year bond transaction, subject to feedback.

At today’s correspondence session, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia took note of the Information on the Implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, the Proposal for the Sixth Amendment to the Recovery and Resilience Plan, and the Information on the Closing Process of the Recovery and Resilience Facility.

The Ministry of Cohesion and Regional Development has approved EU funding for the Integrated Territorial Investment (ITI) project Digital Urban Municipality of Velenje. European Regional Development Fund contribution amounts to €1.56 million.

The eighteenth issue of the Diplomatic Bulletin marks the conclusion of its third year of publication. It features reports on this year's Slovenian Diplomacy Day celebrations and the open day event at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, while also offering reflections on the development of Slovenian diplomacy from its beginnings 35 years ago to the present day.