News

Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon concluded her visit to Ankara with the signing of the protocol of the 9th meeting of the Slovenian-Turkish Intergovernmental Commission for Economic Cooperation and the opening of the Slovenian-Turkish Business Forum. The numerous events and meetings held over the two days in the Turkish capital underscore the significant mutual interest in deepening economic cooperation.

On the first day of her visit to Ankara, the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Tanja Fajon, met with the Turkish Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan. The meeting, which followed Fidan's visit to Slovenia in August, when the two ministers signed the Strategic Partnership Action Plan, focused on bilateral cooperation, the Middle East, Ukraine, the Western Balkans, enlargement, and EU-Türkiye relations.

The Ministry welcomes the European Commission’s Enlargement Package, which provides assessments of the progress made by the countries of the Western Balkans, the Eastern trio and Turkey on their path towards the EU. The package contains a comprehensive analysis of each country's reform efforts and plays a key role in monitoring and promoting the countries' progress and strengthening their European perspective.

Prime Minister Robert Golob today received the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Turkey, Hakan Fidan.

In Brussels, Minister Fajon took part in an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers hosted by Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib under the Belgian Presidency of the EU Council. The meeting was chaired by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell and focused on the EU's relations with Africa and Türkiye, as well as on further assistance to Ukraine and humanitarian aid to Gaza.

State Secretary Marko Štucin held political consultations with Mehmet Kemal Bozay, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of Türkiye in Ankara. The officials welcomed the extensive political dialogue and exchanged views on current foreign policy issues.

Four Syrian families and one individual have arrived in Slovenia from Türkiye, having been selected and accepted as part of the resettlement project. Resettlement is a way of providing legal routes to Europe for people in need of protection.

State Secretaries Samuel Žbogar and Marko Štucin held bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the 18th Bled Strategic Forum. State Secretary Štucin participated in the panel on the EU’s decision-making role.

On 9 February 2023, Prime Minister Robert Golob attended the special meeting of the European Council in Brussels. The leaders’ agenda included the situation in Ukraine and possibilities for further EU support, the economy and migration. They also discussed the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue and the devastating earthquake in Türkiye and Syria. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was the main guest of the first part of the meeting.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia has released half a million euros in emergency humanitarian aid to help mitigate the consequences of the earthquake that struck the Republic of Türkiye and the Syrian Arab Republic on 6 February 2023. Of this amount, EUR 100,000 was contributed through the Slovenian Caritas, the strategic partner of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs in emergency humanitarian response, for the purchase of blankets, clothes and food packages.

At the correspondence meeting, the government agreed to provide humanitarian aid to the people of the Republic of Turkey and the Syrian Arab Republic in the wake the earthquake.

At today's correspondence meeting, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia approved a motion to provide material assistance to the Republic of Turkey in the aftermath of the earthquake through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, in accordance with the request. The total value of the material assistance is 451,400 EUR.

The Republic of Türkiye requested assistance through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism in the aftermath of a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 that struck on 6 February at 2:17 European time, followed by a number of aftershocks. A total of 10 provinces were affected, and according to media reports, the number of dead, injured and missing people is rising rapidly, with an estimated 5 million people living within a 5km radius of the earthquake's epicentre.

At today's correspondence session, the Government decided that Slovenia will send experts to Türkiye to assess the situation and coordinate rescue operations following the catastrophic earthquake.

Minister Irena Šinko has hosted her Turkish counterpart Vahit Kirişci, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of the Republic of Türkiye, for a two-day visit in Slovenia.

Today we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Slovenia and Türkiye.

Prime Minister Janez Janša met with the President of the Grand National Assembly of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Sentop, in Ljubljana today.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan attended the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkey, which this year was dedicated to the possibilities of transforming and adapting diplomacy to new global and security challenges.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan held a videoconference with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Director for EU Affairs of Turkey Faruk Kaymakçi. They assessed bilateral relations and exchanged views on EU-Turkey relations in the light of the incoming Slovenian EU Council Presidency.

Slovenian Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar hosted the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Government of the Republic of Turkey, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, on an official visit.