News

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar is today attending the international video-conference Rome MED 2020 – Mediterranean Dialogues, held this year under the title Heal and Rebuild: A Positive Agenda for the EU in the Enlarged Mediterranean. The Minister took part in a panel session with the foreign ministers of Italy, Portugal, Croatia, and Greece. In his address, he stressed the importance of partnership between the European Union and neighbouring countries in the field of migration as well as green and digital transition, transport, and energy.

The State Secretary at the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Mr Cveto Uršič, representative of the Health Inspectorate, Ms Deana Potza, Deputy Director-General of the Police, Mr Tomaž Pečjak, and the Government spokesman Mr Jelko Kacin participated at the press conference on the current situation regarding COVID-19.

Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs participated in a videoconference of like-minded Member States on some elements of the Migration and Asylum Pact, convened by Polish minister Mariusz Kamiński.

Marko Rakovec, Acting Director-General of the Directorate for International Law and Protection of Interests at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and current chair of the Slovenian delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) participated in an online plenary meeting of the organisation. In his address, he underscored the attention Slovenia pays to raising awareness about the unacceptability of antisemitism and about the tragic events of the past, such as the Holocaust and the Porajmos.

Speakers at the press conference on the current situation regarding COVID-19 included the Minister of Health, Tomaž Gantar, the State Secretary at the Ministry of Infrastructure, Aleš Mihelič, the Secretary from the Healthcare Directorate at the Ministry of Health, Doroteja Novak Gosarič, and the Government Spokesperson, Jelko Kacin.

State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Stanislav Raščan, took part in the opening session of the 27th OSCE Ministerial Council held via video teleconferencing. The event is hosted by the Albanian Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edi Rama, as OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, and will conclude on 4 December 2020.

Janez Janša, Prime Minister, Borut Pahor, the President of the Republic of Slovenia, and Igor Zorčič, the President of the National Assembly, commemorated the International Day of Disabled Persons with a special ceremony.

The Director-General for EU Affairs, Barbara Sušnik, held bilateral consultations with David Cvach, Director-General for European Affairs at the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs.

At its 134th session by correspondence on 30 November 2020, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia was informed by the Government Communication Office (GCO) of the inability to perform Contract No. 81/2019 on the Performance of Public Service in 2020, concluded with Slovenska tiskovna agencija d.o.o. (Slovenian Press Agency), Ljubljana, and the inability to conclude a contract on the performance of public service in 2021.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has issued a financial support decision for the project “Construction of a new building of the Centre for Treatment of Children’s Diseases”. The project worth over EUR 5.8 million will be managed by the Ministry of Health and will receive a little over EUR 4.4 million of European Regional Development Fund support.

Today, the final event of the development cooperation project “School and Peer Mediation in Bosnia and Herzegovina” took place virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Carried out in 2019–2020, the project involved primary schools from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the Brčko District, and the Republika Srpska.

Ahead of the December Home Affairs Ministers Council, today the Ministers of Trio Presidency, German minister Horst Seehofer, Portuguese minister Eduardo Cabrito and their Slovenian counterpart, minister Aleš Hojs, exchanged views on the new Migration and Asylum Pact.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar took part in the second day of the regular meeting of the North Atlantic Council at the level of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, which was held via teleconference. Today’s meeting was mostly focused on exchanging views with the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the foreign ministers of Finland, Sweden, the Republic of Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, in particular, on the impact of China’s rise in the global community.

The press conference on the current situation with the COVID-19 disease was attended by the Deputy Head of the Communicable Disease Centre of the National Institute of Public Health Nuška Čakš Jager, DEOS manager Irena Vincek, the representative of the Ministry of the Interior Borut Jakopin, and the government spokesman Jelko Kacin.

Today, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar took part in the regular two-day meeting of foreign ministers of the North Atlantic Alliance, organised via video-conference. The meeting primarily focused on the reflection process for strengthening the political dimension of the Alliance and on the NATO 2030 Expert Group’s Report.

At the invitation of the German Presidency, State Secretary Gašper Dovžan today attended a virtual informal meeting of ministers for European affairs. The members of the EU General Affairs Council discussed issues relating to the future of Europe and exchanged views on the possibilities of stepping up coordinated action against the COVID-19 pandemic. Ministers of the Western Balkans countries also joined the discussion.

Today’s press conference on the current situation regarding the COVID-19 disease was attended by Janez Tomažič from the Department of Infectious Diseases at the Ljubljana University Medical Centre (UKC), Polonca Mali from the Blood Transfusion Centre of Slovenia, and the government spokesman Jelko Kacin.

The press conference on the current COVID-19 situation was attended by Vesna Vodišek Razboršek, director of the Šentjur retirement home (DSO), and psychologist, Andreja Poljanec.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia took note of the Report of the Permanent Coordination Group for Restrictive Measures on Hezbollah’s Activities and Mode of Operation, reaching the decision to treat Hezbollah as a criminal and terrorist organisation that poses a threat to peace and security.

Today, Slovenia's leading conference on innovation “Innovation Day” took place in a virtual format under the title “Symptoms of Creativity”. This year’s event was organised for the first time in partnership with the Creativeforum.si platform launched by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It brought together over a thousand participants from more than 50 countries, for a lively discussion on the pivotal role of creativity as an international societal driving force and the potential of cooperation between traditional industries and creative sectors. “Supporting creativity and innovation is one of the pillars of Slovenia’s foreign policy, and creativity will be one of Slovenia’s cross-sectoral priorities during its presidency of the Council of the EU”, stated State Secretary Stanislav Raščan in his opening speech.

The Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the Icelandic foreign ministry, conducted a study entitled “Empowered diplomacy: bridging the gender gap” on equal opportunities of women and men in diplomacy. Its findings suggest that since 2009, the situation regarding the gender gap in higher positions in Slovenian diplomacy has largely improved. The aim of the project was to obtain up-to-date and transparent insights into gender equality and equal opportunities in diplomacy, and to subsequently identify and design the necessary measures for further improvement.

The press conference on the current COVID-19 situation was attended by the Head of the intensive care unit at the Clinic for Infectious Diseases at UKC Ljubljana, Matjaž Jereb, and the government spokesman, Jelko Kacin.

Today, Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs attended the first ever Schengen Forum meeting through a videoconference link. The meeting, at which the European Commission gathered EU home affairs ministers and MEPs, marked the launch of regular discussions on the future of the Schengen area.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has issued a financial support decision for the project “Wastewater collection and treatment in the Meža River basin – Municipality Mežica”. The project worth EUR 529,000 will be implemented by the Municipality Mežica and will receive EUR 272,000 of Cohesion Fund support.

Today’s epidemiological situation: a relatively large number of tests were carried out yesterday (as many as 6,587). One thousand six-hundred and nine cases were confirmed, which means that the proportion of positive tests was 24.4%. Hospital care required 22 more COVID-19 patients (namely 1,324) in comparison to Wednesday. Two-hundred-six patients needed intensive care, which is nine less than the day before. Ninety-eight patients were discharged from hospitals in total. Yesterday we also had a lot of deaths in Slovenia: 48 people died in hospitals, nursing homes and care homes.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar today held a video conference with the Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Development Cooperation of Iceland, Gudlaugur Thór Thórdarson. Minister Logar stressed the positive and friendly bilateral relations and expressed Slovenia’s interest in further deepening economic cooperation with Iceland.

This year, following the decision of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and in agreement with the Holy See, a Slovenian Christmas tree, a spruce from the Kočevje forests, will be erected in St Peter's Square in the Vatican City. It will be decorated with handmade Slovenian ethnographic ornaments. A Slovenian Christmas tree being put up in the Vatican, as well as the accompanying promotional events that will take place, is an excellent way to promote Slovenia, especially in the light of Slovenia’s Presidency of the Council of the EU in the second half of 2021. The project is managed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food. The opening ceremony will take place in the Vatican City on 11 December 2020.

Today, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar attended the virtual ministerial meeting of the Regional Forum within the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) as the main platform for fostering dialogue and cooperation in the region. In his address, Minister Logar spoke in favour of further strengthening the relations and cooperation within the UfM to increase security and stability and promote overall development in the Mediterranean.

The press conference on the current Covid-19 situation was attended by the acting director of the Healthcare Directorate of the Ministry of Health, Marija Magajne, psychologist Peter Markič, and the government spokesperson, Jelko Kacin.

Today, State Secretary Stanislav Raščan took part in a virtual meeting of Foreign Ministers of EU Member States and Southern Neighbourhood partner countries. Against the backdrop of the 25th anniversary of the Barcelona Process, the ministers exchanged views on the future of the EU-Southern Neighbourhood partnership.

The afternoon press conference on COVID-19 was attended by the General Manager of the Šmarje pri Jelšah Care Home Gordana Drimel and psychologist at France Bevk primary school in Tolmin Žarko Trušnovec.

On 20 November, Prime Minister Janez Janša ordered, based on the epidemic situation and counsel at EU level, the competent ministries to prepare everything necessary for mass voluntary coronavirus tests, and to establish a programme for registering candidates for voluntary vaccinations by 5 December at the latest.

Today’s press conference on the current situation regarding the COVID-19 disease was attended by the head of the UKC Maribor emergency centre Dr Gregor Prosen, State Secretary at the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities Mateja Ribič, deputy head of the Communicable Disease Centre of the National Institute of Public Health Nuška Čakš Jager, and the government spokesman Jelko Kacin.

At today's 49th extraordinary session of the National Assembly, Prime Minister Janez Janša presented in detail the draft Act determining intervention measures to contain the consequences of the second wave of COVID-19, or the sixth anti-corona package for mitigating and eliminating the effects of the COVID-19 epidemic, and the legislative package aimed at maintaining the condition of society, the state, and the economy, after the epidemic.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has issued a financial support decision for the project “Network of social services and intergenerational cooperation”. The project worth EUR 855,000 will be implemented by the Municipality Brežice and the Municipality Krško and will receive EUR 280,000 of European Regional Development Fund support.

State Secretary mag. Monika Kirbiš Rojs participated in the online expert conference on areas that will receive EU 2021-2027 funding. She presented the preparations for European Cohesion Policy implementation in the period 2021-2027 and the use of the funding available under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. The event, which was attended by over 1,200 participants, was hosted by Tiko Pro Event company on the occasion of its tenth anniversary.

The Minister of Finance, Andrej Šircelj, presented the Government's measures relating to the economic, social and health area, which are covered by the sixth anti-corona package.

The press conference today on the current COVID-19 situation was attended by the head of the regional civil protection service in Koper for the DSO area, Gabrijela Valenčič, the head of the RS civil protection service, Srečko Šestan, and the government spokesperson, ambassador, Jelko Kacin.

On 24 November 2020, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar took part in the Berlin Foreign Policy Forum, which was organised by the Körber-Stiftung foundation in Berlin together with the German Foreign Ministry. The Forum was opened by the foreign ministers of the Trio Presidency of Germany, Portugal, and Slovenia.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan addressed the participants of today’s webinar on circular economy and challenges emerging during the pandemic, and briefly outlined Slovenia’s experience and cooperation with Latin American countries in this area. The webinar titled Circular Economy in the COVID-19 Era: Challenges and Opportunities is one of the introductory activities of the Latin American and Caribbean Days (LAC Days), an international conference planned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for spring 2021.

The director of the Centre for the blind, visually impaired, and elderly in Škofja Loka, Silva Košnjek, assoc. prof. Robert Masten from the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Psychology, and Jelko Kacin, the government spokesperson, participated at the afternoon press conference about the current COVID-19 status.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan addressed the participants of a virtual seminar on the life and work of Branislava Sušnik, organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the Embassy of the Republic of Paraguay and the Slovene Ethnographic Museum. The event was part of the introductory activities organised as a prelude to the Latin America and Caribbean Days international conference with the central event planned to take place in spring 2021.

Dr Milivoj Piletič, Medical Director of Novo mesto General Hospital, and Government spokesperson Ambassador Jelko Kacin attended the today’s press conference on the current situation regarding the COVID-19 epidemic.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has issued a financial support decision for the project “Establishment of residential group care for adults with intellectual disabilities in the cohesion region Vzhodna Slovenija”. The project worth EUR 4.8 million will be implemented by the Training, Work and Care Centre Črna na Koroškem and will receive over EUR 3.8 million of European Regional Development Fund support.

On Saturday evening, Prime Minister Janez Janša had a meeting with the management of Murska Sobota General Hospital, in which they focused on efforts to control the spread of the novel coronavirus in one of the most endangered regions. They also talked about successes that the public hears too little about, necessary investments, and the importance of mutual solidarity among teams that protect health and save lives.

On Saturday late afternoon and evening, Prime Minister Janez Janša visited University Medical Centre Maribor (UMCM) and the City Municipality of Maribor.

On this day 25 years ago, a peace agreement was reached in Dayton. It represents an important milestone in the European history, bringing peace and stability to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The agreement was an important victory of diplomacy over war and brought an end to the conflict in the region and the dreadful atrocities suffered by the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Dayton Peace Agreement still guarantees sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“Friday is nearly over, after spending the whole day coordinating COVID-19 measures and holding long conversations in between with Angela Merkel, currently presiding over the EU Council, and other EU heads of state in order to find compromise solutions for adopting the seven-year EU budget and the recovery fund. The situation calls for reason,” Prime Minister Janez Janša wrote on Twitter.

At today's video conference, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar and his Brazilian counterpart, Ernesto Araújo, confirmed the traditionally good relations between their respective countries, expressing mutual interest in finding new ways to build on the existing foundations.

Based on the current state of the epidemic and the latest EU Council video conference, the competent ministries have been instructed today to prepare everything necessary by 5 December to launch the voluntary mass coronavirus testing campaign and set up a programme for registering individuals opting for voluntary vaccination,” Janez Janša announced on Twitter.