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State Secretary Stanislav Raščan conducted virtual political consultations with Reenat Sandhu, Secretary (West) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of India. The two high officials confirmed the good relations between the two countries, expressing a mutual interest in strengthening bilateral and multilateral cooperation.

On Friday, December 10, 2021, at 1 pm, after more than fifty years, Slovenia finally welcomed back thirteen Slovenian feature films (picture and tone negatives), which had been on February 15, 1968 deposited for storage at the Yugoslav Cinematheque in Belgrade by the production company Triglav Film. This deposit was based on the contract signed between the Yugoslav Cinematheque and the Republic Committee for Culture of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia.

The 22nd Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment and the Coastal Region of the Mediterranean and its Protocols took place in Antalya, Turkey. The most important achievement of the meeting is the designation of the entire Mediterranean Sea as an emission control area for sulphur oxides. In addition to adopting the Medium-Term Strategy of the United Nations Environment Programme, the Mediterranean Action Plan for 2022–2027 and the Post-2020 Strategic Action Programme for the Conservation of Biological Diversity, the parties also designated new marine protected areas and adopted the Antalya Ministerial Declaration.

EU ministers of the interior have unanimously concluded that Croatia has fulfilled the necessary conditions for the application of all parts of the Schengen acquis.

Minister dr. Jože Podgoršek assumed the presidency role at the Council for Agriculture and Fisheries at the French assembly for the rural areas yesterday, an interest grouping that unites representatives of local authorities, parliament members, academics and researchers. The central focus of the meeting was on the development of the rural areas for the further development of the common European agricultural policy. It was on this occasion that he gave Joël Giraud, minister of rural affairs, the beehive as the symbol of the Slovenian countryside.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia has made voluntary contributions to the Council of Europe to support three important areas of their work.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša together with the ministers of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia signed the book of condolence in memory of the late Prof. Dr Lovro Šturm, former president of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Slovenia and minister of justice and of education and sports.

"Digital technologies offer huge opportunities for the improvement of service provision, participatory processes and cooperation with citizens. However, we need to ensure that these technologies are trustworthy, human-centred and focused on the fundamental rights and values of the EU," said the Slovenian Minister of Public Administration Boštjan Koritnik at the start of the informal meeting of EU State Chief Information Officers (EU CIO meeting). The meeting was attended by 54 participants from 30 countries, five Western Balkans.

Prime Minister Janez Janša and the Minister of Digital Transformation Mark Boris Andrijanič today met with the representatives of Google.

Slovenia will formally announce its candidature for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2024–2025 term in New York today. The decision on the candidature put forth on the initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was adopted by the Government of the Republic of Slovenia after having been considered by the Committee on Foreign Policy of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia.

A photo exhibition entitled Personae is on display in the lobby of the Ministry of Culture. Mexican-American portrait photographer Carlos David explores the complex relationship between how we see ourselves and the way we present ourselves to others. The exhibition is on display until February 22, 2022.

During the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU, the 41st session of the Executive Body for the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution took place in Geneva in a hybrid format from 6 to 8 December 2021. At a time when some of the capital cities across the world have once again decided to shut down all activities, this time because of excessive air pollution, the parties are adopting new provisions for cleaner air.

As part of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU, the international conference "Semantic Interoperability Community – SEMIC 2021", a key European event in the field of semantic interoperability, organised by the Ministry of Public Administration in collaboration with the European Commission, took place on Wednesday 8 December 2021. The title of the conference was "Human Centric Data Spaces – Powered by Interoperability".

Today, the Minister of the Interior, Aleš Hojs, attended the seventh ministerial meeting of the EU Internet Forum, organised by the European Commission in cooperation with the internet industry.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has approved over EUR 1.1 million from the European Regional Development Fund to support the project Restoration of the Rafutski Park and design of park entrances. The project is the latest in a series of similar EU-funded redevelopment projects that foster efficient use of space in urban areas. Over the past seven years, the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has dedicated EUR 77.3 million in EU funding to investments that foster town revitalisation.

The Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia is responding to the report by the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) on the state of democracy in Slovenia.

At this year’s Amazon Academy event, Minister Mark Boris Andrijanič stressed the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) for Europe’s success, since they create many jobs and bring great added value to the economy.

Today, Director-General Barbara Sušnik hosted consultations of the Trio Presidency of Germany, Portugal and Slovenia. Its 18-month term, which was strongly marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and the adoption of measures for post-pandemic economic and sustainable recovery, concludes at the end of this year.

On 7th December, Minister of Defence Matej Tonin and the European Commissioner Janez Lenarčič attended the Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network Day/ video conference.

On 7th December, Minister of Defence Matej Tonin attended the annual conference of the European Defence Agency where innovations in European defence were at the forefront of the talks. Minister Tonin participated in the panel Defence Innovation - A Strategic Imperative for the EU?

In an interview with the Demokracija magazine, the Slovenian Prime Minister – currently Chair of the Council of the European Union and President of the Slovenian Democratic Party – Janez Janša spoke about Slovenia's 30th birthday, the work of the Government, the Presidency of the Council of the EU, the epidemic, and the destructive behaviour of the left-wing opposition and its puppet masters hidden behind the scenes.

State Secretary Dr Stanislav Raščan, acting as Minister for Development Cooperation, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and the representative of the country holding the presidency of the Council of the EU, attended the 2021 Seoul UN Peacekeeping Ministerial held in a virtual format. In his address, he presented Slovenia’s peacebuilding efforts.

State Secretary Dr Stanislav Raščan attended a high-level event on “Water and Displacement” via audio-video conference.
He asserted that water is at the heart of many global, regional and local challenges ranging from health to the effects of climate change. This is also one of the reasons why Slovenia chose water as a key priority of its Council Presidency in development cooperation.

The EU Network of National Rapporteurs and Equivalent Mechanisms against Trafficking in Human Beings (NREM) met today by videoconference, in the context of the Slovenian Presidency of the European Union. The Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs gave an opening speech.

We would like to inform our esteemed clients that the official hours of the Consular Department remain suspended until further notice. Our clients are kindly advised that prior appointment via phone (+20 2 37498171) or email (sloembassy.cairo@gov.si) is requested to perform any consular service. In particular cases, scans of the documentation may also be requested in advance before allocating a time slot for approaching the Consular Department.

The head of the advisory group at the Ministry for Health, Mateja Logar, took part in the press conference on COVID 19.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has approved EUR 764.5 thousand of European Regional Development Fund contribution for a project, implemented under the Agreement on the Development of the Region, for setting up electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in Kranj. This is the first project supported by the ESI funds focusing entirely on EV charging stations; thus far EV charging stations were supported under Park and Ride projects resulting in around one hundred parking units offering EV charging.

The last meeting of the Working Group of the Public Procurement Council, chaired by Director General Sašo Matas and his colleagues, took place today at the Directorate for Public Procurement of the Ministry of Public Administration in the framework of the Presidency.

Today, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar attended the Rome MED 2021 – Mediterranean Dialogues international conference, which is taking place in the Italian capital under this year's title “Leveraging Transitions”. Minister Logar together with the Portuguese Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares Bueno and Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman took part in the panel on Mediterranean common goods, stating “we are proud that Slovenia has joined the EUMED, an excellent platform for cooperation also for its Foreign Ministers. It is important that countries on both sides of the Mediterranean strive for common values and goals, even if at different paces, for a better future.”

State Secretary Dr Stanislav Raščan attended the virtual event "Inclusive and Resilient Digital Transition: A New Chapter for the AU-EU Relations?" at which he stressed the importance of strengthening cooperation between the African Union and the European Union in this field.

At today's meeting of the Telecommunications Council, chaired by the Minister of Public Administration, Boštjan Koritnik, the EU ministers unanimously endorsed a general approach on the NIS2 directive, which will make a major contribution to improving the EU’s resilience and cyber incident response capacities. The meeting was also attended by the Minister of Digital Transformation, Mark Boris Andrijanič, who chaired the Council's policy debate on "Digital rights and principles" in the context of Europe's Digital Decade 2030.

Today, the Prime Minister Janez Janša attended the Central European Initiative (CEI) summit in Budva via an audio-video link, hosted by the Prime Minister of Montenegro Zdravko Krivokapić.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar attended the 28th Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Stockholm, at which the foreign ministers discussed conflicts and current crises in the region, stressing the importance of an effective OSCE approach in implementing the concept of comprehensive security.

From 1 to 3 December 2021, the Congress Centre Brdo pri Kranju is hosting the EU-Western Balkans Ministerial Forum on Justice and Home Affairs.

At the last meeting of the Working Party on Staff Regulations under the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU, delegates discussed two regular annual reports, namely on the budget and financial expenditure for employees of the EU institutions and the employment of contract staff in the EU institutions. The working party was led by Peter Pogačar, Director General of the Public Sector Directorate, and his colleagues.

State Secretary mag. Monika Kirbiš Rojs and State Secretary at the Ministry of Culture dr. Ignacija Fridl Jarc today attended the conference of the Center for Creativity as special guests to deliver introductory remarks on the occasion of the launch of the call for proposals Promotion of cultural and creative industries – Centre for Creativity 2022. The call for proposals will receive ERDF co-financing.

On 30 November 2021, more than 150 experts and entrepreneurs participated in a webinar titled SMEs & Defence Initiatives: Unlocking Opportunities & Overcoming Challenges (SMEs), organized under the auspices of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU by the European Defence Agency (EDA), the Slovenian Business & Research Association (SBRA) and the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia.

Prime Minister Janez Janša and Minister of Agriculture Dr Jože Podgoršek today met with representatives of non-governmental organisations in the field of agriculture and food.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar attended a meeting of foreign ministers of the North Atlantic Alliance in Riga on 30 November and 1 December 2021.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša, together with the President of the Republic Borut Pahor and the President of the National Assembly Igor Zorčič, attended a special celebration event marking the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. On this occasion which is celebrated on 3 December, the three presidents traditionally hold a reception for representatives of disability organisations every year.

The press conference on the current situation regarding COVID-19 was attended by Robert Carotta, Coordinator for COVID-19 Hospital Beds at the Ministry of Health, Tjaša Žohar Čretnik, Director of the National Laboratory of Health, Environment and Food, Patricija Furlan Fon, Acting Chief Inspector of the Infrastructure Inspectorate, and Maja Bratuša.

Negotiators from the Council and the European Parliament reached a provisional agreement on a new law to promote the availability of data and build a trustworthy environment to facilitate its use for research and the creation of innovative new services and products.

This statement has been co-signed by Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.

At the first ministerial conference on digital transformation, representatives of the Three Seas initiative countries agreed on the need to chart an ambitious path for economic development and competitiveness. They are convinced that this will only be possible through increased investment in digitalisation and closer cooperation in the region.

Prime Minister Janez Janša today held a video conference call with Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg. The two interlocutors assessed the state of the Covid-19 epidemic and exchanged information and experiences with anti-pandemic measures and their effects.

On the 70th anniversary of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), State Secretary Stanislav Raščan took part in a hybrid meeting of the IOM Council in Geneva via videolink. The high-level panel focussed on the impact of COVID-19 on borders, migration and mobility.

On 26 November, the European Commission organised, jointly with France, Germany, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Norwegian Refugee Council, a virtual event on International Humanitarian Law (IHL).

At the meeting of ministers responsible for culture, audiovisual and media in Brussels, which was chaired by the Slovenian culture minister, Vasko Simoniti, the Slovenian Presidency's commitment to a better tomorrow – for a green, sustainable, culturally diverse and resilient European Union – was reaffirmed with the approval of conclusions and discussions.

Minister of Health, Janez Poklukar, the head of the regional unit of the Maribor National Institute of Public Health, Zoran Simonovič, professor Borut Štrukelj from the Faculty of Pharmacy, Ljubljana and Maja Bratuša held a press briefing on the current situation regarding Covid-19 disease.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan gave a speech at Brdo pri Kranju at the Ministerial Conference of the Three Seas Initiative on digital transformation.