Yesterday, State Secretary Marko Štucin attended high-level meetings on the situation in Gaza and Ukraine at the United Nations Security Council. On behalf of Slovenia, he called for more decisive action by the Security Council and respect for international and human rights law.

Minister Tanja Fajon attended the regular meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, chaired for the last time by High Representative Josep Borrell. Ministers discussed the war in Ukraine, Georgia, EU-US relations, the situation in the Middle East and the Horn of Africa. Minister Fajon also briefed ministers on her recent visit to Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia.

Prime Minister Robert Golob attended the signing of the Agreement on the Salary System Reform and New Classifications of Positions and Titles into Salary Grades in the Public Sector, the Collective Agreement for the Public Sector, the Annex to the Collective Agreement for Non-commercial Activities in the Republic of Slovenia, as well as collective agreements or annexes to sectoral collective agreements and agreements harmonised as part of specific pillar negotiations.

To mark the publication of the book by Dr Ana Polak Petrič, Slovenian Ambassador in Berlin, and Dr Grega Pajnkihar, entitled Succession in International Law: Dissolution and Succession after Yugoslavia, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs held a symposium on this topic.

Slobodan Šešum, Director-General of the Directorate for Economic and Public Diplomacy, took part in a panel discussion on the circular economy as part of the 9th Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP).

The Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia organised an international expert event on the protection of nuclear facilities in armed conflicts to examine whether existing international legal norms and political commitments sufficiently address the issue of security and protection.

As a winemaking country Slovenia is in a festive mood at this time of year as grape must has matured into wine on St Martin's Day according to an old custom.

All those seeking opportunities to discover or rediscover typical Slovenian dishes are in for a treat this week, as events will take place around the country to underline the benefits of eating locally grown produce. A new addition to such campaigns, the Week of Slovenian Food will culminate on Friday with a traditional Slovenian breakfast.

Slovenia concluded its second Presidency of the EU Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP) with the 9th Annual Forum at Brdo pri Kranju. The priorities of Slovenia's Presidency of the Strategy, which provides a valuable platform for regional cooperation and the search for common solutions, were youth, water and the circular economy.

The European Commission has announced the selection of 27 chip competence centres in 24 Member States, including Slovenia. The centres will provide essential resources for the development of semiconductor and chip solutions, in particular for SMEs and start-ups.

At today’s session, the Government adopted three decrees seeking to cut the high electricity bills in the upcoming winter season and thus ease the transition to the new system of calculating network charges. The measures are aimed at enabling people to get through the winter calmly, without high electricity bills.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia has decided to provide material aid in the form of food and sanitation items to the Palestinian civilian population affected by the war in Gaza, via Jordan.

At todays’ session, the Government adopted proposed new amendments to the Police Tasks and Powers Act and several measures to cut electricity bills in winter in order to ease the transition to the new system for calculating network charges. It also took note of the initialled documents relating to implementing the reform of the public sector pay system.

State Secretary Marko Štucin reaffirmed the good neighbourly relations during bilateral consultations with Nikolaus Marschik, Secretary General of the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs, held in Bled. He expressed hope that Austria would continue to adopt measures to improve the situation of the Slovenian minority through close cooperation with the minority community.

On Thursday, 14 November 2024, a targeted and reinforced inspection of buses and heavy vehicles was carried out by the Police, the Labour Inspectorate, the Financial Administration, and the Infrastructure Inspectorate.

Below is the response of Prime Minister Robert Golob regarding recent events related to threats and violence against judges.

Prime Minister Robert Golob and President of the Republic of Slovenia Nataša Pirc Musar today held a working meeting to discuss key foreign and domestic policy issues.

At the government committee meetings, the Government adopted, among others, the Amendments to the Business and Financial Plan of the Slovenian Regional Development Fund for 2024 and 2025.

State Secretary Marko Štucin visited Ukraine, engaging in discussions with representatives of the Ukrainian Government and visiting sites affected by the recent aggression. In Borodyanka and Moshchun, he witnessed the severe consequences of the conflict, while in Bucha, he paid tribute to the victims of Russian aggression at the memorial wall.

From 20 to 22 November 2024, on-line information days will be held in several languages for international students interested in studying in Slovenia. Full details and a registration link are available in the attachment.