Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia Anže Logar visited the Holy See, where he had the honour of attending an audience with Pope Francis together with members of the Slovenian delegation. On the 30th anniversary of the Plebiscite on Sovereignty and Independence, Slovenia gifted a Christmas tree to stand in St Peter’s Square. By erecting the tree in the Vatican, Slovenia once again expresses gratitude to the Holy See for its unwavering support during the process of gaining independence.

Dear Ms Mijatović, May I begin by thanking you for your concern and the attention you have been devoting to the current situation regarding the Slovenian Press Agency (SPA). Just as you, I also want the current difficulties regarding the financing of the Slovenian Press Agency to be resolved as soon as possible to the benefit of the employees as well as the Agency itself.

In scope of the HIA project, funded by the European Comission and coordinated by TECOS with the help of SRIP FoF and Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, we are launching the second call for expression of interest, where we invite interested companies with relevant Industry 4.0 references to apply. This is the second of the overall three open calls within this project.

Today’s press conference on the current situation of the Covid-19 epidemic was attended by Anica Hribar, director of the Brežice general hospital, and psychologist Žarko Trušnovec.

Prime Minister Janez Janša will be participating at the European Council meeting in Brussels today. The EU leaders will discuss further harmonisation on Covid-19, climate change, the fight against terrorism, and EU relations with the USA, Turkey, and the southern neighbourhood.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša addressed, via video message, the attendees of the Global Slovenian Business: Cooperation and Development event, uniting Slovenian businessmen around the world, which has been organised by the Slovenian Global Business Network.

On the margins of his visit to Rome, Foreign Minister Anže Logar met David M. Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP). Minister Logar congratulated him on receiving the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to WFP for its efforts to combat hunger, its contribution to improving the conditions for peace in conflict zones, and for efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict.

The press conference on the current Covid-19 situation was attended by the state secretary at the Ministry of Health, Marija Magajne, the state secretary at the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Mateja Ribič, and the government spokesperson, Jelko Kacin.

Below is the interview with Prime Minister Janez Janša for the Hungarian weekly Mandiner. The interview focused on the Slovenian domestic policies, Covid-19 epidemic, Slovenia’s presidency of the EU Council, on cultural Marxism, and on Hungary.

Today, we mark International Human Rights Day. It is very different from previous years. The Covid-19 pandemic has changed our lives without precedent. In fact, it goes far beyond a public health emergency. It is an economic and social crisis, as well as a human rights crisis.

The press conference on the current situation with the COVID-19 disease was attended by Borut Štrukelj, full professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Ljubljana, Dušan Deisinger, medical director of the Izola General Hospital, Eva Grilc, epidemiologist from the NIPH, and the government spokesperson Jelko Kacin.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan took part in a virtual ministerial roundtable on the safety of journalists and the issue of impunity, which was held on the margins of the World Press Freedom Conference 2020 co-hosted by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and UNESCO. The meeting focused on the strengthening of support for countries to increase the safety of journalists and media workers, particularly in fighting impunity for crimes committed against them. At the close of the meeting, a ministerial commitment was adopted.

As part of his two-day official visit to Israel, Prime Minister Janez Janša today met with his host, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In their joint statement to the press, the two prime ministers highlighted the good, friendly relations between the countries since Slovenia gained independence thirty years ago and the importance of innovation for the future competitive advantage of both Slovenia and Israel.

Speakers at today’s afternoon press conference on the current situation regarding COVID-19 were Mojca Matičič from the Clinic for Infectious Diseases at the University Medical Centre Ljubljana, who is also a professional mentor to students at the government call centre, and Robert Masten from the Department of Psychology of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ljubljana.

During his visit to the US, Foreign Minister Anže Logar held talks with US Congressman Paul Gosar and Senator Amy Klobuchar today. Due to measures adopted by the Congress to control the COVID-19 pandemic, both meetings took place via video-conference.

The press conference on the current situation relating to COVID-19 was attended by Boštjan Koritnik, Minister of Public Administration, Dr Matjaž Vogrin, Medical Director of Maribor University Medical Centre, and Government spokesperson Jelko Kacin.

Speakers at the afternoon press conference on the current epidemiological situation included Nataša Slejko, head of healthcare at the Nova Gorica Home for the Elderly and a member of the regional team of the Health Insurance Institute of Slovenia, psychologist Eva Kovač, and government spokesperson Jelko Kacin.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan took part in the EU General Affairs Council video conference. At today’s meeting, the European Affairs ministers and state secretaries focused on examining draft conclusions for the European Council meeting to be held on 10 and 11 December 2020. In this context, they discussed the coordination effort that has been delivered in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including work on vaccines, climate change, the fight against terrorism, EU-UK relations, Turkey, and the Southern Neighbourhood.

Today’s press conference on the current Covid-19 situation was hosted by Mateja Logar from the Infectious Diseases Clinic of the Ljubljana University Medical Centre and Jelko Kacin, the government spokesperson.

Following the agreement between Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar and US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo on launching the Strategic Dialogue between the two countries, the inaugural session of the Dialogue was held today at the Department of State.

Prime Minister Janez Janša has given an interview to Sieci, a Polish weekly magazine. The interview covers the prime minister’s letter to European leaders about the rule of law, Slovenia’s presidency of the Council of the EU, the American elections, the media in post-communist countries and his political career.

Foreign Minister Anže Logar is visiting Washington D.C. at the invitation of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The main purpose of the visit is further strengthening of relations between Slovenia and the US, historical friends, strategic partners and NATO allies.

Today, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar spoke in the general debate during the Special Session of the UN General Assembly on the COVID-19 pandemic. In his address, he stressed that the current health, economic and social crisis calls for a well-coordinated regional and global response.

Prime Minister Janez Janša today met with the representatives of the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce. The discussion focused on the Covid-19 epidemic in the context of trade and the possibilities of easing measures imposed on trade activities. They agreed that restrictions imposed on trade activities can only be relaxed, if the number of Covid-19 cases decreases. For this to happen, all citizens must act responsibly and respect measures for the prevention and containment of the Covid-19 epidemic.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The spokesperson, Jelko Kacin, said at the press conference that 1546 infections were identified from 5673 tests yesterday, which is a 27.25% infection rate - 3 percentage points down from the day before. About a quarter fewer infections were detected in 1100 fewer tests compared to Wednesday.

Prime Minister Janša was a guest on the programme A Talk with the Prime Minister on Televizija Slovenija. The key topic of the interview was the Government's efforts to tackle the epidemic, including the adoption of measures to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. The Prime Minister also touched on current political issues, on Slovenia's role in the European Union and the world, and on the relations in the coalition.

Today, 20 November 2020, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar symbolically handed a keyboard to Mr Matjaž Ugovšek, representative of the Slovenian Sustainability Society “Duh časa” (the Spirit of Time) a non-profit volunteer organisation which has been engaged in collecting used computer equipment since December 2011. The collected computer equipment is made ready for use and donated to individuals, families in need, and non-profit organisations.

Today Prime Minister Janez Janša attended an informal video conference of the European Council on the current COVID-19 situation.

The spokesperson Jelko Kacin started the press conference with a review of today's epidemiological situation. Once again, the data is not encouraging, he said, upon expressing his concern regarding the development of the situation in the subsequent days.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar today attended a video conference of EU foreign affairs ministers. Two central themes dominated the discussions, multilateralism and the situation in Palestine. Regarding the former, they agreed that the Union has the political, economic and financial power to co-create an effective multilateral order, which provides the best framework for tackling modern global challenges.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša met with the Mayor of Ljubljana Municipality Zoran Janković, Jože Mermal and Bojan Albreht.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša received the Australian Minister for Finance, Mathias Cormann, who is also a candidate for the Secretary-General of the OECD.

On Tuesday, 17 November 2020, Prime Minister Janez Janša appeared on the Nova24TV show Pogovor s predsednikom vlade (Interviewing the Prime Minister). In the first part of the show, the Prime Minister talked about the efforts to tackle the epidemic, and whether the Slovenian health system will hold on, the figures, and how the government prepared for the second wave. In the second part, he talked about the current political situation and post-crisis recovery.

The press conference on the current situation regarding the COVID-19 disease was attended by Metoda Dodič Fikfak, Director of the Institute of Occupational, Traffic and Sports Medicine, members of the expert team preparing the Sixth Anti-Coronavirus Package (ACP6) Jure Knez from Dewesoft and Dušan Olaj, General Manager of Duol, and the government spokesman Jelko Kacin.

Prime Minister Janez Janša responded to today's reportings related to his letter to the European leaders.

Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on the programme A Talk with the Prime Minister on Planet TV. He spoke about how the Government is tackling the second wave of the novel coronavirus epidemic, about current political affairs and about the Government's plans for the future.

The director of the residential care home in Rakičan, Zoran Hoblaj, prof. dr. Mojca Juriševič, from the Department of Education Studies, Faculty of Education, Ljubljana, and the government spokesperson and ambassador, Jelko Kacin, participated at the afternoon press conference today on the current issues regarding COVID-19.

Today, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar joined his Swedish and Lithuanian counterparts to participate in a virtual ministerial panel on the future of transatlantic relations, held at the beginning of a two-day International Conference Road to Warsaw Security Forum. The foreign ministers discussed the future of relations between Europe and the United States of America and the role of transatlantic leadership in tackling security, economic and other global challenges.

Minister Dr Jože Podgoršek participated today in the 14th annual meeting of the Ministers for Agriculture from South East Europe (SEE) that took place in the form of an audio-visual conference. The meeting was organised by the Secretariat of the Regional Rural Development Standing Working Group (SWG) in South East Europe (RRD SWG), and by the Republic of Serbia that had taken over the one-year presidency over this Working Group. The meeting was attended by the ministers and their deputies from the Western Balkans countries, by the high representatives of the European Commission, international organisations and observer countries, and by Slovenia among the latter ones.

The press conference on the current situation regarding the COVID-19 disease was attended by dr. Nuška Čakš Jager from the National Institute of Public Health, prof. dr. Borut Štrukelj from the Faculty of Pharmacy in Ljubljana, and the government spokesman, Jelko Kacin.

The Slovenian Parliament today discussed the draft amending the budget of the Republic of Slovenia for 2021 and the amended draft of the budget for 2022. The RS Government submitted the drafts to the Slovenian Parliament for discussion. The introductory clarification of both drafts was presented at the Slovenian Parliament session by Prime Minister Janez Janša.

State Secretary Dr. Stanislav Raščan addressed the participants of the US-led virtual Ministers’ Forum of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance (IRFBA) via a live video link.

On 17 November 2020, State Secretary Gašper Dovžan attended a video conference of ministers and state secretaries for European affairs to discuss topical issues.

At today’s correspondence session, the Government declared that the state of epidemic with regard to COVID-19 would be extended for another 30 days for the entire country.

Deana Potza from the health inspectorate opened the morning press conference about the current Covid-19 situation by saying that on the first day that the ordinance banning gatherings was in force, Friday, 13 November, only warnings were issued. There were at least 1,814 reports of breaches between 1 September and 8 November of this year, the highest number relating to the hospitality industry, followed by public spaces. She said that observation of the measures has been continually improving, as we head in the right direction as a society. This will help us get through the current challenging phase of the epidemic as quickly as possible, while allowing the health sector to operate at capacity.

Today Prime Minister Janez Janša took questions from deputies in the National Assembly. Marjan Šarec from the List of Marjan Šarec (LMŠ) raised a question related to current developments in the country, Franc Trček from the Social Democrats (SD) a question associated with the fight against the epidemic, Luka Mesec from the Left with regard to the measures to control the epidemic and Janja Sluga from the Modern Centre Party (SMC) a question regarding the regulation of comprehensive use of cannabis.

State Secretary Tone Kajzer attended a virtual ministerial conference to promote the freedom of religion or belief, which was organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland as a follow-up to the meetings of senior representatives of countries, international organisations, civil society, and religious leaders. The event was intended to discuss the state of religious freedom around the globe.

Government spokesman Jelko Kacin started the press conference with an overview of the current epidemiological situation. Yesterday, 1,792 tests were conducted and 501 infections (27.9%) were confirmed, with most new infections recorded in Kočevje (44), followed by Ljubljana (39). On Saturday, 920 cases (25. 82%) were confirmed with 3,563 tests performed. On Sunday, 34 people died.

Minister Dr Jože Podgoršek participated today in an informal videoconference of EU Ministers for Agriculture and Fisheries. On the Agenda, the Ministers had agricultural as well as forestry issues. In focus was the discussion on the state of play in agricultural markets due to Covid-19 pandemic, on food loss and waste, African Swine Fever (ASF), on the common position on the EU Forest Strategy, and on preparations for the United Nations Food Systems Summit 2021, one of the greatest international events to take place during Slovenia’s 2021 EU Council Presidency.

Prime Minister Janez Janša visited the Jesenice General Hospital today, where he met the hospital’s director Marko Toplak and management staff, and viewed construction works in progress at the hospital.

Doroteja Novak Gosarič, Secretary from the Health Care Directorate at the Ministry of Health, spoke about the current situation regarding Covid-19 disease.

The Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs and State Secretary Anton Olaj attended an extraordinary meeting of the EU Council of home affairs ministers through a videoconference call. The morning session, attended by the State Secretary, was devoted to a discussion on the fight against terrorism. The reason for putting this topic on the agenda was the recent terrorist attacks across Europe, which Slovenia condemned in the strongest terms.

Today, State Secretary Tone Kajzer held a video call with Polish Undersecretary of State Paweł Jabłoński to discuss economic cooperation, the current activities in both countries in the framework of the Three Seas Initiative and some other topical issues.

In order to improve the epidemiological situation in the country, the Government extended the existing measures for 14 days and adopted some new ones.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Jože Podgoršek has outlined measures to soften the impact and eliminate the consequences of Covid-19 in the Sixth Coronavirus Package (PKP6).