News

Minister Irena Šinko and state secretary dr. Darij Krajčič presented the projects of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food (MKGP) under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) at the press conference today.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has approved EUR 527,000 in EU funding for public passenger transport in Nova Gorica (project Integrated Territorial Investments, Urban Municipality Nova Gorica, Sustainable Mobility Measure – Public Passenger Transport).

On Thursday, 1 December 2022, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Regulation Amending and Updating the Regulation on the Method of Ensuring Rights to Persons with Temporary Protection, which entered into force on Saturday, 3 December 2022.

On 2 December 2022, a ceremony was held in an event tent at the Cirkovce substation to mark the completion of the Cirkovce-Pince transmission line project. The ceremony was attended by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Robert Golob, and the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban. The Government Communication Office took care of the media logistics.

International Volunteer Day is an opportunity to place the spotlight on volunteers and their importance for the well-being of society. This year, volunteer organisations are highlighting their role in the strengthening of solidarity with the slogan ‘Together, Act Now’.

On 3 December, the Slovenian Embassy in Beijing organized the Slovenian-Chinese poetry reading, "Poetry is the Salt of the World". The event was organized in collaboration with the City Library Kranj, the Center for Slovene as a Second and Foreign Language of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ljubljana, Beijing Foreign Studies University and the Beijing restaurant Tian xia yan (The Lord of Salt).

Minister of Foreign Affairs Tanja Fajon addressed the panel entitled “Reviving Multilateralism: the UN in Times of Crisis” at the Rome MED 2022 (Mediterranean Dialogues) International Conference. In her speech, she emphasised in particular the importance of cooperation, dialogue and confidence-building in international relations.

"The construction of the Cirkovce–Pince transmission line could not have been completed at a better time, as Europe is preparing for the the much-awaited green transition, while at the same time such investments provide much-needed energy stability," said Prime Minister Robert Golob at a press conference held together with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban after the opening of the 2x400-kV overhead line. The ceremony was also attended by Croatian Economy Minister Davor Filipović.

Minister of Defence Marjan Šarec attended the two-day ministerial meeting of the Central European Defence Cooperation (CEDC) Initiative in Krems, Austria.

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.

The recipients of Slovenia’s highest accolades for achievements in the arts for 2023 have been named. In line with the decision and resolutions of the Prešeren Fund Management Board, the 2023 Prešeren Award goes to multidisciplinary artist Ema Kugler, and the Academy-trained painter Prof. Herman Gvardjančič.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food has issued an open call to citizens, legal persons or other organisations for the identification of candidates for the 2023 Golden Bee Award.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Tanja Fajon attended the 29th Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in Łódź, Poland, where foreign ministers discussed the war in Ukraine and the current situation within the OSCE.

Prime Minister Robert Golob, President of the Republic Borut Pahor and President of the National Assembly Urška Klakočar Zupančič organised and hosted a traditional reception for representatives of disabled people's organisations at Brdo pri Kranju ahead of International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which is commemorated on 3 December.

Under the leadership of the National Coordination of Macro-Regional Strategies at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Slovenia will hold the Presidency of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) from 1 November 2022 to 31 October 2023. Its term will conclude with the EUSDR Annual Forum, which Slovenia is planning to hold on 24–25 October 2023 at Brdo pri Kranju.

At today’s session the government determined the draft act on emergency intervention to address high energy prices, and began discussing the draft act on aid to the economy to mitigate the impact of the energy crisis. The government also adopted a response to the report filed by FIDES regarding the violation of the code of ethics by the Deputy Prime Minister Danijel Bešič Loredan.

In Rabat, the capital city of Morocco, where the 17th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage is taking place, the multinational nomination of Lipizzan horse breeding traditions has been listed on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

How will the unitary patent system simplify and improve the European patent system for the benefit of its users? This was the focus of today's event organised by the Slovenian Intellectual Property Office, the European Patent Office and the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for companies and interested professionals. The system is due to enter into force in April next year.

This year again, a pre-Christmas meeting of Slovenians in Finland was held in Helsinki, organized by our Honorary Consul Andreja Valtanen. Slovenian Ambassador Mihael Zupančič attended the gathering.

In Rabat, the capital city of Morocco, where the 17th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage is taking place, the 'Beekeeping in Slovenia, a way of life' project has been listed on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The National Security Council (SNAV), consisting of the Prime Minister, the Minister of Defence, the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Infrastructure, and the Director of the Slovenian Intelligence and Security Agency, met today at the first regular meeting in this term.

This year’s national conference of non-governmental organisations, organised by the Centre for Information Service, Co-operation and Development of NGOs (CNVOS), is aimed at addressing online, media and physical assaults on non-governmental organisations at home and abroad. Speakers shall discuss how to protect against such assaults, how and when to efficiently respond to them, and how to communicate them. The participants were greeted by the Minister of Public Administration, Sanja Ajanovič Hovnik.

Minister of Justice dr. Dominika Švarc Pipan and State Secretary dr. Igor Šoltes visited the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the Council of Europe, in light of the thirtieth anniversary of Slovenia's membership in the Council of Europe, which will take place next year.

The main topics of the visit of the Minister for Digital Transformation, Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh, to Osaka, Japan on 24 November 2022 were the announcement of deeper cooperation between Slovenian universities and the University of Osaka and its research centres, the use of robots in creating a more inclusive society, and the role of the Smart City Strategy in ensuring the digital and green transition.

Minister for Digital Transformation Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh attended the Ministerial Council Meeting of the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) in Tokyo, Japan, on 22 November 2022. The meeting adopted a declaration agreeing that the development of an AI ecosystem is essential to address the complex challenges facing society, but that it must be safe and focused on human well-being.

Minister for Digital Transformation, Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh, met with prominent representatives of the Japanese government, business and academia working in the field of digital transformation at the start of her official visit to Tokyo on 21 and 22 of November 2022. She also took part in a roundtable discussion on country practices and challenges of global cooperation in the development and use of artificial intelligence, organised by the GPAI on 22 of November 2022.

At today’s sessions of the government committees, the government, among other things, recapitalised the Public Fund of the Republic of Slovenia for Regional and Rural Development, activated the new item in the budget titled Increase of earmarked assets of the Slovene Enterprise Fund - Expensiveness, adopted multiple decisions on the reallocation of the national budget funds, and included some new projects in the applicable Development Programmes Plan 2022-2025.

State Secretary Samuel Žbogar attended the Ministerial Council between the EU and the Organisation of African, Caribbean, Pacific States. The Ministers discussed global issues, in particular food and energy security, the Post-Cotonou Agreement, the implementation of the Partnership Agreement, the Global Gateway Strategy and the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI), as well as cooperation in international forums.

At today’s correspondence session, the government adopted a regulation that defines the upper threshold of energy product prices for major commercial electricity consumers.

The plenary meeting of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) is taking place in Gothenburg, Sweden, from 28 November to 1 December 2022. The Slovenian delegation presented the life and work of one of the most important chronicler of the historical events and tragedies of the 20th century, writer Boris Pahor, who passed away in May 2022 at the age of 108, to the Committee on the Holocaust, Genocide and Crimes against Humanity.

Prime Minister, Dr Robert Golob, Minister of Education, Science and Sport, Dr Igor Papič, and State Secretary at the Ministry of Culture, Matevž Čelik Vidmar, visited the National and University Library (NUK).

Today, at the invitation of the Minister of Defence of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defence Marjan Šarec and a delegation visited Ukraine.

State Secretary Samuel Žbogar attended the Foreign Affairs Council in its development configuration. The meeting discussed the follow-up to the sixth EU-African Union Summit and Team Europe’s crisis response, with a focus on Ukraine and Afghanistan.

On 16th November 2022, Her Excellency Barbara Sušnik presented her Letters of Credence as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Slovenia to the Kingdom of Belgium to His Majesty The King of the Belgians.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has approved EUR 890,000 in EU funding for the project Integrated Territorial Investments Kranj: Planina overpass – Hrastje business zone.

At the request of the Ukrainian side, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will provide 370,000 euros in humanitarian aid for the purchase of an ambulance for the transport of premature babies and mothers. The donation agreement was signed today by the Acting Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Renata Cvelbar Bek, and the Ambassador of Ukraine to Slovenia, Mr Andrii Taran.

Minister of the Interior Tatjana Bobnar attended an extraordinary meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels. Ministers discussed the situation on the main migration routes.

In the wake of the global food crisis, which has deepened since the start of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has proposed that Slovenia join Ukrainian President Zelenskiy's 'Grain from Ukraine' initiative, in which Ukraine donates grain while donor countries, including Slovenia, finance shipping to the least developed countries in Africa and Asia, where people are at risk of starvation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has supported a project to complete the renovation of a rehabilitation home in Ukraine. With the project, which will be implemented by the Ministry’s strategic partner for humanitarian aid, Slovenian Caritas, Slovenia will help ensure facilities for the proper care and rehabilitation of 90 children, people with disabilities and young people with special needs, who are increasing in number as a consequence of the bombing.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs joins the commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Violence against women remains one of the most common human rights violations around the world. For many years, the global average of one in three women experiencing violence in their lifetime has remained unchanged.

The proposed mechanism for limiting natural gas price presented this week by the European Commission will need substantial corrections, stated Bojan Kumer, Slovenian Minister of Infrastructure, after today’s meeting of energy ministers.

In Iran, we are increasingly witnessing the disproportionate use of force against peaceful protestors, which is why today's Special Session of the UN Human Rights Council on the state of human rights in Iran is extremely important.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Tanja Fajon attended the 7th Regional Forum Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) and the EU-Southern Neighbourhood Ministerial Meeting held in Barcelona. The ministers discussed the impact of the current situation in the region on younger generations and its improvement, solidarity, and cooperation, and outlined the way forward for the work of the UfM.

At today's session, the Government adopted decrees on financial aid for the shortage of fodder in 2022 and on financial compensation for beekeepers. It also adopted the starting points for the drafting of normative solutions in relation to the minor offence proceedings conducted during the efforts to contain the infectious disease COVID-19.

The European Commission has approved the new Programme for the elimination of material deprivation in the Republic of Slovenia for the 2021–2027 period. A total of EUR 32.6 million has thus been secured until 2029 to help the most vulnerable population groups and eliminate their material deprivation, of which the EU will contribute EUR 29.4 million.

State Secretary Žbogar and Omani Deputy Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalifa Al-Harthy held the first political consultations between Slovenia and Oman in Muscat. These are the first consultations since the signing of the Agreement on the Establishment of Political Consultations in December 2021, which forms the basis for further regular contacts at this level.

The two-day CM22 session of the ESA Council, which was attended by the State Secretary at the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology Matevž Frangež, has concluded in Paris. He also participated in the OECD Green Growth and Sustainable Development Forum entitled Green Innovation and the Impact of Economic Shocks.

Prime Minister Robert Golob today visited the Ljubljana Institute of Oncology and the Ljubljana University Medical Centre (LUMC).

There are many soldiers. And there are many poets. But there are few soldiers who are also poets. General Rudolf Maister would deserve to be remembered for this fact alone. But he was so much more. Just as he knew how to write – signing his works with his pen name Vojanov – he also knew how to wield a sword. So he was not only a man of words, but above all a man of actions. Without him our northern border would not be where it is today – if there would be a border at all.

State Secretary Samuel Žbogar, accompanied by a Slovenian business delegation, attended a Saudi-Slovenian business forum, organised at the Association of Saudi Chambers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He met with Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia Adel bin Ahmed Al Jubeir.