The Slovenian contemporary fine art exhibition entitled We Live in Interesting Times opened yesterday, 12 July 2021, at the European Parliament in Brussels.

Today's press conference was attended by deputy head of the Communicable Disease Centre at the National Institute of Public Health Ms Nuška Čakš Jager. Ms Maja Bratuša presented the current epidemiological situation.

On behalf of the Slovenian Presidency of the EU Council, the Minister Dr Jože Podgoršek participated today in a 2-day high level event, a video conference of the EU promotion policy stakeholders. The conference addresses the question of such policy as a possibility of transition to a more sustainable EU food system, of improving the healthy alimentary habits, and of fostering the competitiveness of this sector in the global markets. The organiser of the conference is the European Commission (General Directorate for Agriculture and Rural Development). In the opening part, the participants were addressed by the EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Janusz Wojciechowski.

Today, the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia adopted the Resolution on Long-Term Climate Strategy until 2050. A clear goal of Slovenia’s climate strategy is to transition to net-zero emissions and become climate neutral by 2050.

Today the Council of the European Union adopted a regulation on establishing the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC). The regulation paves the way for the development within Europe of the next generation of supercomputers.

New rules of entry to Slovenia will apply as of July 15 2021.

On Thursday, 8 July, Chief of the General Staff of the Slovenian Armed Forces, Major General Robert Glavaš, hosted a reception at the beginning of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Pursuant to paragraph one of Article 112 of the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia and Articles 229 and 234 of the Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly, Prime Minister Janez Janša today submitted to the National Assembly a proposal for a minister without portfolio. In accordance with paragraph three of Article 8 of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia Act, the Government may have a minister without portfolio to assist the Prime Minister in coordinating work and performing the duties of their office within the given powers.

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.

Mr Boštjan Koritnik, Minister of Public Administration, will present the Slovenian Presidency’s sectoral programme and priorities in the areas of digitalisation, cybersecurity and better regulation at the July meetings of the European Parliament’s committees. Today he appeared before the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) to present priorities in the areas of artificial intelligence and digital services.

The Minister of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia Vasko Simoniti opened an exhibition of contemporary Slovenian fine art, titled "We are living in exciting times" in the European Parliament in Brussels. The Slovene curator of the exhibition Marko Košan has prepared a selection of works by thirteen Slovene artists who, in the midst of a modern flood of visual images propagated through mass media, are looking for new ways of painting, sculptural and photographic expression aimed at new utopias. In addition to the Minister of Culture Vasko Simoniti the attendees were also addressed by Chair of the Artistic Committee of the European Parliament, Prof. Karol Karski.

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.

At the invitation of the Croatian Foreign Minister, Gordan Grlić-Radman, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anže Logar attended the traditional Dubrovnik Forum held on 9–10 July 2021. Attended by numerous eminent guests, this year’s Forum focused on the future of geopolitics in a world transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic, with particular emphasis on the geopolitical situation of the Western Balkans.

The Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs attended the High-Level Resettlement Forum today. The event was organised by the European Commission to discuss ways of resuming global resettlement efforts disrupted by the Covid 19 pandemic.

In BTC City Ljubljana, the Slovenian Digital Center – Technology for the people, a juncture of Slovenian progress and economic advancement, officially opened its doors. By the end of this year, the broader public will be provided with access to the most advanced technologies, products, services and educational programmes from the field of new technologies. The central economic event of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU is a unique European example of encouraging economy during the entire period of the presidency.

For healthy drinking water, greater environmental protection and improved flood safety. Water must be treated with respect in every part of the water cycle. That is why the amended Water Act, which will unfortunately be the subject of a referendum, limits activities affecting waterside land and completely prohibits the construction of private and potentially dangerous buildings near water. Contrary to certain interpretations, the Act's stricter rules provide greater protection of waterside land and ensure the necessary funds for watercourse maintenance and flood control.

Today, the prime ministers of the Visegrad Group (V4) were on a working visit to Slovenia as the country holding the Presidency of the Council of the EU. On this occasion, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger and Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš met with Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša in Ljubljana. The main topics of the plenary session of the Visegrad Four with the Prime Minister of Slovenia were the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU, the Conference on the Future of Europe, the situation in Western Balkans and other current European topics.