Arriving at today's extraordinary meeting of the European Council, the Prime Minister said in a statement that he expected European leaders today and tomorrow to be able to unanimously express solidarity with Greece and Cyprus and to add the necessary practical steps to this solidarity in the near future. "I am equally convinced that we will be able to express solidarity with the citizens of Belarus, support their democratic aspirations and efforts and advocate for protection against any repression and take all necessary measures," the Prime Minister continued, adding that "we are aware that, above all, the European Union has measures related to so-called soft power and economic sanctions at its disposal". "If such measures are suitably selected and implemented at the right time, they can have a very strong effect," Prime Minister Janša is convinced.

"I expect that today we will be able to achieve European unity in redefining our policy towards China, that, based on impressive work already done by the European Commission, we will separate commercial interests from strategic ones, and that, based on the experience gained during the epidemic’s spring wave, we will actually be able to provide in the shortest possible time all the necessary capacities to help Europe act more coherently, decisively, more effectively, and in the protection of its own citizens and interests in the event of a future crisis; I also hope that, to this end, Europe will allocate production and all other capacities to provide for its domestic territory," the Prime Minister added.

He also pointed out that it would also be necessary to define very clearly the list of strategic products, ranging from artificial intelligence and communications to critical medical or personal protective equipment, for which Europe absolutely cannot depend on a second or third party.

"We have some rather difficult decisions ahead of us and I believe that this time the European Council will be able to tackle them properly," concluded the Slovenian Prime Minister.