The main topic of this year's Forum is energy security and connectivity and solidarity with the current Ukrainian Presidency. The event is particularly significant, as Slovenia takes over the one-year Presidency of the Strategy on 1 November 2022.

Addressing the Annual Forum plenary session, Minister of Foreign Affairs Tanja Fajon stressed the importance of all stakeholders working together to implement the Strategy, which is currently facing the biggest challenges in its history as a result of the war in Ukraine. The panel focused on new challenges and opportunities in the Danube region, with Minister Fajon stressing the importance of youth participation and welcoming the newly established Danube Youth Council. Slovenia will take over the EUSDR Presidency from Ukraine and focus on enhancing cooperation between all countries and regions and on their empowerment to face the current challenges.

A virtual EUSDR ministerial meeting was held on the sidelines of the Forum and attended by Acting Director-General for European Union Affairs Ksenija Škrilec. She expressed solidarity with Ukraine and thanked the Ukrainians for holding the EUSDR Presidency in extremely difficult circumstances. She called for enhanced cooperation between all countries and for more effective exploitation of the potential of jointly addressing challenges such as those in energy security and transport in the region. At the end of the meeting, a joint declaration was adopted containing the main political orientations for EUSDR implementation in the coming period.

At the Forum, the Slovenian National Coordinator for EU Macroregional Strategies and her colleagues took over the helm of the ship symbolising the EUSDR Presidency from their Ukrainian counterparts.