Today, the Lighthouse Park in Izola saw the opening of the “My Reading Room” art installation, through which Slovenia participates in the Europe Readr project. “Europe Readr invites us to read the European Union in all its diversity and interconnectedness. It is also an invitation to encourage reading as a way to improve our understanding of who we are, where we come from and where we are headed, while facing various social changes,” underlined Gašper Dovžan, State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan presented the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU at a virtual event hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union. The Brussels-based business association traditionally organises such events when an EU member state assumes the presidency of the Council of the European Union.

During today's video conference call, State Secretary Gašper Dovžan and Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs of North Macedonia Nikola Dimitrov assessed the development of bilateral relations as very positive. Against the backdrop of the recent Slovenian EU Council Presidency take-over, the pair discussed the European perspective of North Macedonia.

Acting Director-General Igor Jukič held consultations with the French Director-General for Global Affairs, Culture, Education and International Development, Michel Miraillet, via video conference.

Prime Minister Janša met today in Brdo pri Kranju with mayors of Slovenian municipalities. During the working consultation, they discussed measures to control the spread of COVID-19 in the coming months and public finance and development issues with the ministers.

Representatives of Member States of European union (EU) and European Space Agency (ESA), the European Commission (EC),the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the Executive of ESA met at the European Space Traffic Management Conference »Fostering a European approach on Space Traffic Management« on July 7, 2021.

Today, State Secretary Uroš Lampret was the keynote speaker at the webinar titled The Strategic Compass and the Western Balkans: Towards a tailor-made and strategic approach to partnerships?

Today in the European Parliament, Prime Minister Janez Janša presented the six-month programme and the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2021. This traditional presentation of priorities is held at the beginning of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The presentation took place at the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg after which the Slovenian Prime Minister attended a press conference together with President of the European Parliament David Sassoli and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora of Kosovo Donika Gërvalla-Schwarz held a video conference meeting. They assessed bilateral relations and exchanged views on the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of Kosovo from the perspective of the second Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, stressing the importance of maintaining a credible European perspective for the Western Balkan countries, thereby further contributing to the stabilisation of the region.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan today held talks via a video conference with Serbian Minister of European Integration Jadranka Joksimović. They gave a positive assessment of the development of bilateral relations, focusing on further EU enlargement, which is one of the key priorities of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency.

Today in the European Parliament, Prime Minister Janez Janša presented the six-month programme and the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2021. The presentation of priorities is customary and takes place at the start of every presidency of the Council of the European Union. Prime Minister Janša presented the Slovenian Presidency’s priorities at a plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. After the presentation, he attended a press conference together with President of the European Parliament David Sassoli and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.

Prime Minister Janez Janša addressed the European Parliament and presented the six-month programme of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union including the Presidency’s priorities in the second part of 2021. It was a traditional presentation of priorities at the beginning of the presidency of the Council of the European Union. The presentation took place at the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

State Secretary Stanislav Raščan attended the high-level event "Development in Transition: Dialogues to chart new paths for Latin America and the Caribbean", via video conference, where participants discussed possibilities for creating new models for sustainable and inclusive recovery in Latin America and the Caribbean.

On Friday, 2 July 2021, the Commission approved the proposed amendment to the Operational Programme (OP), version 6.0. The amended OP now accommodates the thematic areas or contents that will be the first to receive support from the React-EU initiative.

At today's 24th regular session of the National Assembly, Prime Minister Janez Janša answered questions raised by the deputies Jerca Korče (LMŠ), Jani Prednik (SD) and Anja Bah Žibert (SDS) on the epidemiological situation following the announcement of the end of the COVID-19 epidemic and future measures, the anticipated new wave of the COVID-19 epidemic and the budget deficit.

State Secretary Dovžan outlined the priorities of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro Đorđe Radulović at a video conference meeting. They also focused on resilience, the discussion on the future of Europe, and enlargement of the Union.

Today, at the webinar organized by the Egmont Royal Institute for International Relations in Belgium, Minister of Defence Matej Tonin, MSc, presented the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the EU Council in the defence and security sector.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan attended the meeting of the Committee on European Affairs at the invitation of the presiding Lithuanian Committee on European Affairs and the Deputy Foreign Minister for European Affairs Arnoldas Pranckevičius, presenting the priorities of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency and devoting particular attention to post-pandemic resilience and recovery.

Prime Minister Janez Janša today attended a commemoration in Ivančna Gorica to mark both the first mass for Slovenian soldiers and the 30th anniversary of the independent and democratic Republic of Slovenia. On this occasion, the Prime Minister attended the Mass for the Homeland, co-led by the Ljubljana Archbishop and Metropolitan, Msgr Stanislav Zore, and delivered a speech at the commemoration.

In line with the tradition of the presiding countries, Slovenia has hosted correspondents from Brussels accredited at the EU institutions at the beginning of its presidency. The correspondents spoke to the highest representatives of the Government about the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency, and had an opportunity to experience Slovenia as a boutique, sustainable and safe tourist destination.