Ministers and their deputies met over dinner to prepare for the first EU-GCC Summit, which will take place in Brussels on 16 October 2024. They had an in-depth discussion on the situation in the Middle East, the role of Iran in the region and the challenges in the Horn of Africa. The EU seeks to strengthen its partnership with the GCC, particularly in the areas of regional security and economic cooperation, and is working to enhance dialogue on various global challenges such as climate change, digitalisation and counter-terrorism. Slovenia welcomes and supports the strengthening of the strategic partnership with the GCC.

During the debate, State Secretary Štucin condemned the escalation of violence in Lebanon and the rising tensions between Hezbollah and Israel. Slovenia calls on all parties to refrain from violence and to avoid any further escalation of the situation. Štucin also recalled that the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza should not be forgotten and called for a ceasefire. In this context, he highlighted the activities of Slovenia as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.