Council members held a policy debate on the new legislative package for the defence of democracy, presented by the Commission last December, which is aimed at regulating the representation of interests of third countries in the internal market and ensuring inclusive and resilient electoral processes. This comprehensive package is still under consideration by member states. State Secretary Marko Štucin expressed his support in principle, but cautioned: "When adopting the directive on the representation of foreign interests, particular attention will have to be paid to striking the right balance between effectively countering threats and strictly respecting the fundamental principles and values of the European Union." He added that an in-depth analysis will be needed to clarify the numerous questions on the legal basis, the scope of the directive and its effectiveness in practice, as well as its impact on national legal systems. He pointed to the administrative burden of the proposed measures for smaller member states. 

As part of the annual rule of law dialogue, the Council held a country-specific discussion. The exchange of views focused on key developments in Spain, France, Croatia and Italy. Slovenia supports these discussions and welcomes the new format of the country-specific discussions, which now focus on only four member states per meeting, allowing for a more in-depth exchange of views and best practices. The State Secretary underlined that Slovenia sees this dialogue as a meaningful and constructive preventive tool aimed at strengthening the rule of law in the EU as a whole and in individual member states.

He presented a joint Slovenian-German initiative to improve the efficiency of decision-making in the enlargement process. "Introducing some technical changes at certain stages of decision-making could speed up the accession negotiations of countries wishing to join the European Union. This would prevent the over-politicisation of the accession process and strengthen it. In the current geostrategic context, the further enlargement of the EU is our priority," he said, adding that we must seize this political moment to build a stronger and more united Europe by the end of the decade.