The State Secretary underscored that Slovenia’s third presidency of the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative in the twenty years of its existence bore testimony to our strong commitment to the Adriatic-Ionian region and confirmed that Slovenia was also a maritime country. He assured further support to the Western Balkan countries in their rapprochement with the European Union, as also reflected in the key priorities of our EU Council Presidency. In this regard, it was important to look for synergies between the priorities of Slovenia's two presidencies, which are only one month apart. Among them, infrastructure connectivity, culture and tourism, the issue of the young generation, and digitalisation are at the fore. We also aim to ensure stability, make progress on reform and sustainable economic development, and strengthen the political dialogue in the region. 

The participants were also addressed by the President of the National Assembly of Slovenia Igor Zorčič, who hosted the Conference, President of the Republic of Slovenia Borut Pahor, and the Secretary General of the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative, Ambassador Giovanni Castellaneta. The plenary session was attended by the Presidents of the Parliaments of Italy, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia and the Deputy Speaker of the Albanian Parliament, as well as by representatives and delegations from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece and San Marino.