The European Commission gave the green light to Slovenia's plan for resilience and recovery. This was message brought by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and the College of European Commissioners to today's meeting with the Slovenian Government, which is taking over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the second time.

Slovenia today assumes the Presidency of the EU Council for the second time. The European Commission, headed by President Ursula von der Leyen, is visiting our country to mark this occasion. After a morning visit to the Pediatric Clinic in Ljubljana, Prime Minister Janša and the President of the European Commission met for a bilateral meeting at Brdo, followed by a working lunch of the entire Government and the European Commission. After that, a press conference was held for Slovenian and foreign media.

Today, Slovenia is taking over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the second time. On this occasion, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the College of Commissioners arrived to Ljubljana and will meet with the Slovenian Government today.

In the context of the visit of the College of European Commissioners, Foreign Minister Anže Logar met with Vice-President of the European Commission and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, Neighbourhood and Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi, Crisis Management Commissioner Janez Lenarčič and Commissioner for International Partnerships Jutta Urpilainen. He presented the priorities in the field of foreign policy during the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, stressing that Slovenia would strive to strengthen the Union's resilience and to achieve a stronger role of the Union in global relations.

At the invitation of the German Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Svenja Schulze, State Secretary Stanislav Raščan attended the Water Dialogues for Results virtual conference in Bonn. The conference is part of a formal preparatory event for the United Nations (UN) Conference on the Water Action Decade scheduled for March 2023 in New York. This will be only the second conference in the history of the UN dedicated exclusively to water.

Today, as part of her visit to Slovenia, Minister of Health Janez Poklukar received President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and the Slovenian Prime Minister, Janez Janša.

Eighty years ago, more precisely on July 22, 1941, a few minutes before 8 am, a single shot was fired on the Tacen-Šmartno road. The shot, whose echo continued to be heard even a decade later, when it became to be regarded by the Slovenian people as the shot that started its armed uprising. The Archives of the Republic of Slovenia keeps the criminal charge issued by the Commander of the Security Police and Security Service in the Occupied Territory of Carinthia and Upper Carniola against two suspects, two young men, who were believed to have fired the shot from a bush and wound a bike-riding Franc Žnidaršič, an interpreter at the German gendarmerie station.

Members of the Slovenian Government today paid a day-long visit to the Podravje region. They first met for a working consultation at Ptuj Castle, followed by separate programmes of the Prime Minister and ministers. During the visit, the Prime Minister and ministers met with representatives of businesses, institutions, municipalities and other stakeholders in the region. The visit to the region concluded with a public debate on the development and prospects of the Podravje region.

Prime Minister Janša made a guest appearance on Radio City in Maribor today during the Government visit to the Podravje region. In conversation with radio talk show host Dejan Vedlin, he talked about the epidemic, the importance of vaccination, the spread of the delta variant, the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the Government's plans for the Podravje region.

Minister Zvone Černač today visited University Medical Centre Maribor as part of the government visit to the Podravje region. The Minister paid a visit to the Slivniško Pohorje-based Department of pulmonary disease that will be relocated to new premises thanks to EU funding. In Maribor, the Minister made a visit to the neighbourhood Pod Pekrsko gorco, and met with the Mayor of Selnica ob Dravi dr. Vlasta Krmelj and her colleagues. State Secretary mag. Monika Kirbiš Rojs also participated in the government visit, meeting Mayors of Poljčane and Hoče-Slivnica and paying a site visit to the Business Zone Tezno.

On the eve of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU, State Secretary Gašper Dovžan took part in a meeting of the co-chairs of the Conference on the Future of Europe. He will co-chair the Executive Board of the Conference on the Future of Europe during the Slovenian Presidency.

The statements made by CNVOS and summed up by the media that the conditions of the EEA and Norway Grants call for proposals discriminate against non-governmental organisations are not true. The conditions for non-governmental organisations are set in order to guarantee that only the best project proposals are selected. Slovenia being accountable to the Donor States expects the available grants to be spent efficiently by generating the highest possible added value.

Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy has approved EU funding for the project Revitalization of the Old glass workshop and Vrazov trg square with adjacent streets (Ptuj). The EUR 4.9 million redevelopment project will be implemented by Urban Municipality Ptuj under the Vision and Strategy of Urban Municipality Ptuj 2015-2025 and supported by the EU, with the contribution from the European Regional Development Fund amounting to nearly EUR 2.2. million.

The Slovenian Prime Minister started a regional visit to Podravje today. He visited the Archdiocese of Maribor and met with Msgr Alojzij Cvikl, Archbishop of Maribor and Metropolitan.

The newly appointed Permanent Representative of the Republic of Slovenia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Anita Pipan, presented her credentials to Tatiana Valovaya, Director-General of the UN Office in Geneva, on Tuesday, June 29, 2021.

Today in Brdo pri Kranju, Prime Minister Janez Janša attended a working lunch with ambassadors of the EU Member States, which was organised by the Portuguese chargée d’affaires as a representative of the member state currently holding the presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Today, EU agriculture and fisheries ministers finished a two-day meeting where they focused on confirming the deal on the reform of the common agricultural policy. As part of fisheries items, the ministers discussed the Communication on the state of play of the common fisheries policy and consultation on the fishing opportunities for 2020. As part of phytosanitary items, the ministers adopted a Council Decision requesting the Commission to submit a study on biological control agents (macroorganisms) of plant pests. They also discussed setting a protection goal for honey bees. Minister Jože Podgoršek attended the meeting on behalf of Slovenia. The Portuguese ministers responsible for agriculture and fisheries symbolically handed over the Presidency of the AGRIFISH Council to Minister Podgoršek. Agriculture minister also held several bilateral meetings with ministers of other EU member states.

State Secretary Gašper Dovžan attended the meeting of the Bureau of the Committee of the Regions before the beginning of Slovenia’s EU Council Presidency.

Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs took part in the videoconference of the Berlin process ministers of the interior. Ministers were examining options for further cooperation in fight against organised crime and corruption in the Western Balkan countries and talked about EU's support to Western Balkan countries in managing migrations.

Prime Minister Janez Janša attended the opening ceremony of the new gas unit of the Brestanica Thermal Power Plant, where he was the keynote speaker. Prior to the ceremony, he visited the new gas unit, the gas tanks and the first gas units accompanied by the director of the Brestanica Thermal Power Plant Tomislav Malgai and the CEO of GEN energija Martin Novšak.