News

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan, President of the EU’s General Affairs Council, hosted an informal meeting of European Affairs ministers at Brdo pri Kranju today. At an informal discussion on strengthening the Union’s resilience, ministers supported the efforts of the Slovenian Presidency towards a more comprehensive response to crises.

The European Commission today published its second annual Rule of Law Report within the European Rule of Law Mechanism set up in 2020. The report aims to elevate the understanding of the founding values and promote the rule of law culture, thereby strengthening this principle in the European Union as a whole.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar attended a follow-up meeting of foreign affairs ministers of the Central 5 (C5) countries, i.e. Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

Today, the Executive Board agreed to allocate more seats in the Conference Plenary to regional and local elected representatives, as well as to social partners.

Foreign Minister Anže Logar attended a virtual Conference of Presidents of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union. The meeting was organised by the National Assembly Committee on EU Affairs and the National Council Commission for International Relations and European Affairs, as part of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency.

International Criminal Justice Day is celebrated on 17 July. On that day 23 years ago, the Rome Statute, one of the core pillars of international criminal justice, was adopted.

State Secretary Dr Stanislav Raščan held a meeting with Franck Riester, French Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness. In addition to a general overview of bilateral cooperation, their talks covered investment opportunities in Slovenia, nuclear energy, space, tourism, air connections, automotive industry and digitalisation. The two high officials also discussed the strategic autonomy and economic diplomacy of the European Union.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan gave a speech on the Future of Transatlantic Relations – Priorities for Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, organised by the Centre for European Perspective and the European Centre for International Political Economy.

Today, State Secretary Gašper Dovžan received Hungary’s Minister of Justice Judit Varga, who is also in charge of coordination of EU affairs. Minister Varga is in Slovenia to attend the informal meeting of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council, which is taking place on 15 and 16 July 2021 in Brdo pri Kranju.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar presented the priorities of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency at the Committee on Constitutional Affairs and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar inaugurated the flagship cultural and promotional project of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency together with David Sassoli, the President of the European Parliament, and Gitte Zschoch, the Director of the European Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC), in the Citizens’ Garden in Brussels. “The Slovenian Presidency is placing culture and creativity high on the European agenda,” declared Minister Logar in his introductory address.

The 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva comes to an end today. At the initiative of the European Union, the Council discussed the human rights situation in Belarus, Eritrea and the Tigray region of Ethiopia. As the country presiding the Council of the EU, Slovenia presented the three initiatives that seek to improve the respective human rights situations and call on the authorities to respect their international human rights commitments.

The Government issued the Ordinance amending the Ordinance determining the conditions of entry into the Republic of Slovenia to contain and control the COVID-19 communicable disease and published it in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia.

On 13 July, State Secretary Gašper Dovžan attended via video conferencing the 6th Enlargement Day organised by the European Committee of Regions in cooperation with the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU. He presented the Presidency’s key topics and plans to the high-level audience which included Maciej Popowski, Acting Director-General of the DG for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, and Nikola Dobroslavić, Rapporteur of the Committee of Regions for the Enlargement Package 2020.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan attended a meeting of the European Parliament’s Committee on Development (DEVE) via video conference and briefed the attendants on key priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union on international development cooperation and humanitarian aid. Water and gender equality are the main priorities of the Presidency, which are common to both policy areas. He announced Slovenia’s financial contribution of 500,000 euros to the Advanced Market Commitment (COVAX) mechanism, which aims to ensure the distribution of vaccines and address the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in developing countries. He also announced a donation of 48,000 doses of the vaccine to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and a donation of 250,000 doses of vaccine to Egypt.

Foreign Minister Anže Logar today attended the regular meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council of the European Union, which focused on the geopolitics of new technologies, the Strategic Compass and Ethiopia.

In a telephone conversation, State Secretary Gašper Dovžan briefed the Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs of Albania, Olta Xhaçka, on the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. He assured her of efforts to keep the Western Balkans high on the Union’s agenda, with the EU-Western Balkans Summit contributing to this as well. At the same time, State Secretary Dovžan expressed strong support for Albania's approximation to the European Union as it implements the necessary commitments and reforms.

A Japanese translation of the "Our Rights" project material was presented in Tokyo today, serving as a teaching resource for teachers and children and aimed at educating children about their rights. It is a project conceived by Slovenian experts based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 2005, when the World Programme for Human Rights Education was established.

Foreign Minister Anže Logar met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt, Sameh Shoukry, in Brussels ahead of Monday's session of the European Union Foreign Affairs Council.

Srebrenica Memorial Day on 11 July is a day to remember and preserve the memory of the victims of the massacre in Srebrenica and the horrors that took place during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We will not and must not ever forget Srebrenica – reconciliation is only possible if we remember and acknowledge the suffering and pain of the people. Any denial or relativisation of these tragic events is unacceptable. The Western Balkans region is still heavily burdened with these memories and the painful historical experience. The processes of reconciliation must be accelerated, since this is the only way for all generations to realise their potential and contribute to the region’s well-being, stability and security.