News

State Secretary Dr Stanislav Raščan participated in the Moldova Support Conference in Berlin convened by the foreign ministries of Germany, France and Romania and attended by the Moldovan Prime Minister and Foreign Minister. Dr Raščan reaffirmed Slovenia's support for Moldova’s European perspective and outlined Slovenia’s envisaged aid measures.

On 4 April 2022, the International Atomic Energy Agency´s (IAEA) mission has started an independent peer review of legislative and administrative frameworks of nuclear and radiation safety in the Republic of Slovenia as well as the activities at the Slovenian Nuclear Safety Administration (SNSA) and the Slovenian Radiation Protection Administration (SRPA). During this review, the mission will check compliance of the SNSA and SRPA procedures with the IAEA standards. The event will conclude on 14 April 2022.

As part of a working visit of the members of the Government to the southern part of the Osrednjeslovenska region on 1 April 2022, the State Secretary at the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy attended a working meeting and a working lunch, and participated in a public debate that brought together members of the government, local authorities and regional development players.

Following the Council of the EU’s decision on the assessment of the Slovenian Recovery and Resilience Plan in July 2021 and the signing of the Financing agreement for the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility by the European Commission and the Republic of Slovenia, the European Commission has announced that it has also signed a document on the operational arrangements for the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility in Slovenia.

In the framework of trilateral cooperation in the North Adriatic Sea, Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Anže Logar met for the third time with foreign ministers of Croatia Gordan Grlić Radman and of Italy Luigi di Maio in Zaprešić, Croatia. The ministers took stock of the cooperation in the fields of connectivity, the blue economy and environmental protection, and reviewed concrete proposals for further cooperation.

Today, Prime Minister Janša visited the Koroška Region. As part of the visit, he met with the management of the Tesnila GK. d.o.o. company, and he was also shown the production facilities of the company. With the company's management, the Prime Minister talked mainly about the rubber industry. The company's representatives presented to him the current situation in the industry and their plans for the future. The current situation in the automotive industry was also discussed.

Today, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia paid a working visit to the Osrednjeslovenska Region which comprises the municipalities of Borovnica, Brezovica, Dobrepolje, Dobrova – Polhov Gradec, Grosuplje, Horjul, Ig, Ivančna Gorica, Logatec, Log – Dragomer, Škofljica, Šmartno pri Litiji, Velike Lašče and Vrhnika. To round off the visit, the members of the Government attended a public debate, where they answered questions raised by mayors, entrepreneurs and other development actors in the region

State Secretary Dr Stanislav Raščan met with Märt Volmer, Undersecretary for Europe in the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Tallinn, where he also took part in the conference "Small States in the UN Security Council: Working for Peace to Overcome the Scourge of War”.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša was on a working visit to the southern part of the Osrednjeslovenska statistical region. The Government paid a visit to the municipalities of Borovnica, Brezovica, Dobrepolje, Dobrova – Polhov Gradec, Grosuplje, Horjul, Ig, Ivančna Gorica, Logatec, Log – Dragomer, Škofljica, Šmartno pri Litiji, Velike Lašče and Vrhnika.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on the Sarah Jane Mee Show on Sky News. Talking to the host Sarah Jane Mee, the Prime Minister spoke mainly about the current situation in Ukraine.

State Secretary Dr Stanislav Raščan took part in the High-level Pledging Event on Supporting the Humanitarian Response in Afghanistan. In his intervention, he announced that Slovenia would contribute another EUR 50,000 through the United Nations Population Fund – UNFPA for addressing the most urgent humanitarian needs of the Afghan people.

On Wednesday, 30 March 2022, Prime Minister Janša was a guest on "Connect the World" on CNN International, talking to host Becky Anderson about the current situation in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Janša today visited the Muslim Cultural Centre and met with the Mufti of the Islamic Community in Slovenia, Nevzet Porić. The Prime Minister’s meeting with the Mufti was devoted to a discussion on the functioning and life of the Islamic community in the Republic of Slovenia. The discussion also touched upon the war in Ukraine and the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

On Saturday, March 26, 2022, the regular annual General Assembly of the Slovenian Association in Sweden was held in Jönköping, which this year marks the 30th anniversary of its independent work. The members of the General Assembly reviewed the work done in 2021 and adopted an activity plan for 2022.

Yesterday Prime Minister Janez Janša met with the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, Andrej Plenković, in Zagreb. The meeting was held to continue the dialogue between the two countries at the highest level, review current bilateral and European issues, and exchange views on the situation in Ukraine, especially in light of the discussions at the recent extraordinary NATO summit and the European Council meeting.

EU home affairs ministers met at the Extraordinary Justice and Home Affairs Council today in Brussels to continue the discussion on the consequences of the situation in Ukraine. They focused on the reception and registration procedures for persons fleeing Ukraine, on the implementation of material and financial support for member states, and security issues. The Extraordinary Council was attended by Slovenian State Secretary Franc Kangler.

At the invitation of the Minister of Immigration and Integration Mattias Tesfaye, the Slovenian Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs paid a visit to Denmark on 24 March 2022. In addition to meeting Minister Tesfaye, he also visited the Danish Return Agency and a reception center for Ukrainian citizens fleeing the war due to Russia’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine.

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

Prime Minister Janez Janša met today with Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament, who is attending the conference of parliamentary speakers of the EU Member States in Slovenia.

Boštjan Lesjak has safely arrived in Kyiv to start serving as Slovenia’s chargé d'affaires ad interim to Ukraine. Upon arrival, he said that the city was empty with audible alarms and detonations in the distance, but that day-to-day life was running normally for those who remained in the capital. As of 9:00 a.m. tomorrow, the Slovenian Embassy will thus be open again.

Minister Jože Podgoršek attended today a Slovenian-wide planting of honey plants, which takes place across the entire country on the initiative of the Slovenian Beekeepers' Association. Several other countries and institutions from across the globe joined the project. The aim of the project, which is supported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, is to plant as many honey plants as possible in Slovenia and around the world.

On 26 March, the Bee Forage Planting Day project initiated by the Slovenian Beekeepers' Association took place in Tokyo. In collaboration with Tokyo urban beekeepers, a non-profit organisation called Ginza Honeybee Project "Ginpachi", we have sowed sunflower and cosmos seeds and planted lavender, blackberries and blueberries. We also decorated it with the plaque with information about the project.

Prime Minister Janez Janša is attending the second day of the European Council meeting in Brussels, where participants will discuss security and defence, energy, and economic issues and review the current challenges related to COVID-19.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša is attending a meeting of leaders of EU Member States in Brussels.

Due to numerous false claims made over the past few days by media outlets and subsequently by individual political parties about the decision to send a chargé d’affaires ad interim of the Republic of Slovenia to Kyiv, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would like to communicate its response to the most frequently highlighted false statements. It should be noted that the claims relating to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the procedure of appointment of a chargé d’affaires have not been previously verified with the lead authority.

Prime Minister Janez Janša today in a video speech addressed the participants of the National Conservatism Conference: The Future of the Nation-state in Europe, which was organised by the Edmund Burke Foundation in Brussels on 23 and 24 March 2022. Speaking in the panel "Facing the Russian aggression", Prime Minister Janša talked about the war in Ukraine, his recent visit to Ukraine together with the Polish and Czech prime ministers and the situation in that country.

Prime Minister Janez Janša is today attending the extraordinary summit of NATO Heads of State and Government in Brussels to discuss the Russian aggression in Ukraine and current developments in NATO related to the situation in that country.

Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on the television programme "Your World" broadcast on Fox News. Hosted by Neil Cavuto, "Your World" focused on the current situation in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on today’s TV Celje programme, where he talked about topical issues in Slovenia and the world, his government’s two years in office and the upcoming parliamentary election.

Prime Minister Janez Janša was today’s guest on CNN's At This Hour live, where he discussed with host Kate Bolduan the situation in Ukraine, the visit of three Prime Ministers to Ukraine, the NATO Summit in Brussels and current foreign policy issues.

Prime Minister Janez Janša attended today in Brdo pri Kranju the 16th Slovenian Business Summit entitled "Horizons of the Future", where he delivered the opening address. The President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia, Tibor Šimonka, and, in a video address, the President of the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Gennadiy Chyzhykov, also addressed the audience.

At today's press conference in Brdo pri Kranju, Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša and Deputy Prime Ministers Zdravko Počivalšek and Matej Tonin presented the projects completed in Slovenian municipalities during the Government's 2020–2022 term of office. At the press conference, they also discussed future projects already approved by the Government and the ongoing projects.

At Expo 2020, participants in the round table convened on World Water Day by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning and Spirit Slovenija discussed groundwater in relation to climate change. Rok Tomšič, Head of the Department for Bilateral Economic Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, underlined the important role of economic diplomacy in facilitating the entry of Slovenian companies into new markets.

Due to the emergence of extraordinary circumstances in Ukraine, the Slovenian Intellectual Property Office is doing its utmost to protect the rights of Ukrainian intellectual property right holders.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan attended the General Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, with state secretaries and ministers for European affairs focusing on the preparations for the European Council on 24–25 March 2022.

Minister Jože Podgoršek attended the Agriculture and Fisheries Council in Brussels. The discussion centred on the information provided by the European Commission and the exchange of views on the situation in agricultural markets in light of the war in Ukraine. Ministers also held a video conference with the Ukrainian minister of agriculture Roman Leshchenko, who presented the situation in Ukraine. Ministers held an important discussion on the strategic plans of the common agricultural policy (CAP). Slovenia provided information on seeking alternatives to plant protection products in agricultural and non-agricultural land, in particular as regards glyphosate. Ministers also discussed the issue of large carnivores.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša chaired the session of the Government Council for Slovenians Abroad, which was devoted to discussing the preservation and strengthening of the knowledge of the Slovenian language among Slovenians living abroad, as well as on reviewing the Council's work to date and establishing directions for its future work.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša chaired the session of the Government Council for Slovenians Abroad, which was devoted to a discussion about the current situation of the Slovenian community abroad, its organisational structures during and after the pandemic, future financial perspectives as an opportunity for the Slovenian minority, and the possibility of applying for Interreg projects.

Foreign Minister Anže Logar attended a regular Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels chaired by High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell. The main topics on the agenda were the Russian military aggression against Ukraine and the situation in Mali and the Sahel. EU foreign affairs and defence ministers sitting in a joint session approved the Strategic Compass.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan attended a ministerial meeting in the framework of the European Humanitarian Forum in Brussels on strengthening compliance with international humanitarian law.

Today, Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs briefed a number of foreign ambassadors to Slovenia on the activities and measures of the Slovenian Government in relation to the crisis in Ukraine.

In 2022, the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination focuses on the theme “Voices for action against racism”, highlighting the importance of safe public participation, of freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and of protecting civic space to stand up against racial discrimination. The elimination of all forms of discrimination is one of Slovenia’s foreign policy priorities in the sphere of human rights.

Prime Minister Janša was a guest on NPR’s "All Things Considered" yesterday, where he spoke about the visit of the three prime ministers to Kyiv and the war in Ukraine.

Air transport in Europe, including Slovenia, and around the world has been severely restricted due to the consequences of the covid-19 epidemic and continues to be so. According to Eurostat, the drop in passenger transport in Slovenia in 2020 in comparison to 2019 amounted to 83.3 percent (EU average was 73.3 percent), which was the greatest decline among all EU countries.

Prime Minister Janez Janša today appeared in the "Rosemary Burton Live" show on CBC News, where he spoke about the situation in Ukraine and his recent visit to Kiev together with the prime ministers of the Czech Republic and Poland.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on the show "Ura moči (The Hour of the Power)" on Planet TV, where he talked about his visit to Ukraine and the current situation in that country.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on Planet TV's daily news programme, where he answered some questions on Ukraine and current affairs.

Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on the programme Odmevi. He talked about the war in Ukraine and his visit to Kiev.

The Prime Minister made a statement for 24UR Zvečer, speaking about Ukraine and his visit to Kiev. He said that life in Kiev was fairly normal when the city was not under curfew: "The city of Kiev is far from defeated."

Tonight, Prime Minister Janez Janša was the guest of the Nova24TV show Theme of the Day, where he talked about his journey to Ukraine and the current situation.