At the start of the European Youth Olympics Festival, Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob welcomed the young athletes and wished them a successful participation.

State Secretary Marko Štucin hosted State Secretary of the Slovak Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs Peter Mišík in Ljubljana. They confirmed excellent relations between Slovenia and Slovakia, expressed great interest in further strengthening cooperation between the two countries and exchanged views on current European, regional and international affairs.

With a tradition of more than 30 years, the European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) is the largest sports event for young athletes between 14 and 18 years of age. It is a festival that gives young athletes their first encounter with Olympism and Olympic values.

At today’s correspondence meeting, the Government adopted an opinion on the request that the National Assembly reconsider the Long-Term Care Act.

Minister Tanja Fajon participated in the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, where the ministers confirmed the EU’s long-term security commitment to Ukraine. They focused on finding solutions for the imminent food crisis resulting from Russia’s decision to withdraw from the Black Sea Grain Initiative allowing exports of Ukrainian grain. They also discussed the EU’s relations with Türkiye.

In the current Development Programmes Plan 2023-2026, the Government has included three new projects for the budget user Slovenian Armed Forces, changed the value of one project and closed one project. It took note of the Information on the situation and the implementation of measures to prevent and contain the spread of African swine fever and appointed a special mission of the Republic of Slovenia for the membership of the UN Security Council.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia has appointed a special mission for the UN Security Council for the period of its membership and observer status from 1 October 2023 to 31 December 2025.

Minister of the Interior Boštjan Poklukar attended an informal meeting of Home Affairs ministers in Spain.

The Prime Minister Robert Golob attended the 10th meeting of the Strategic Council for the Prevention of Hate Speech today.

Today, the National Security Council (NSC) held its session in the extended formation and discussed national security in the light of Slovenia’s recent election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council in 2024 and 2025. Prime Minister Dr Robert Golob also attended the NSC session.

“Our mission, which is to serve Slovenia and its inhabitants at home and abroad, transcends trying moments and experiences,” wrote the editor, Ambassador Sabina Stadler Repnik, in the editorial of the first issue of the Diplomatic Bulletin. The publication of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs aims to inform the general public about the work and achievements of Slovenian diplomacy.

Minister Matjaž Han presented Slovenia’s current work in the field of space technologies and plans to enhance cooperation with the Agency in order to obtain full membership of the Republic of Slovenia in the ESA to Geraldine Naja, Director of Commercialisation, Industry and Competitiveness at the European Space Agency (ESA).

At the government committee sessions, the government included the construction of the unit of the Domžale Retirement Home in Moravče in the Development Programme Plan for the period 2023–2026 and gave its consent to the General Terms and Conditions of the operation of the Eco Fund.

Secretary-General Ambassador Renata Cvelbar Bek met with DFA Undersecretary Antonio Morales and Assistant Deputy Minister for European Affairs Maria Elena Palo Algabre during her visit to the Philippines, where Slovenia will open a new Consulate General. Their discussions focused on the strengthening of economic and political cooperation between the countries.

In Brussels, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Tanja Fajon attended the third summit of the EU with the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), a group of 33 countries from the region. The aim of the summit, which brought together more than 50 leaders, was to revive contacts after almost a decade of no dialogue at the highest political level and to strengthen relations between the two regions in the new geopolitical context.

Minister of Defence Marjan Šarec is in the State of Colorado to attend the 30th anniversary of the cooperation between the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia and the Colorado National Guard in the State of Colorado. On this occasion, he met with Colorado Governor Jared Polis and Colorado National Guard Commander Brigadier General Laura L. Clellan.

At today's correspondence session, the Government agreed to the proposed amendments to the draft Social Assistance Act and to the proposed amendments to the draft Long Term Care Act.

The Rome Statute, which established the International Criminal Court, was adopted 25 years ago to this day, and in 2010, States Parties designated 17 July the Day of International Criminal Justice. The Court represents a key step forward in the fight against impunity for the most heinous crimes, which pose a threat to international peace, security, and prosperity, and marks a milestone in the pursuit of international justice.

After the Government approved the proposed amendment to the Recovery and Resilience Plan on Monday, 10 July 2023, the Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Recovery and Resilience submitted the proposed amendment to the plan together with all supporting documents to Brussels today. We expect the final approval of the adjustment proposal of the plan by the Council of the European Union this autumn.

This afternoon, Slovenian Prime Minister Golob visited the villages of Orehovec and Pišece in the municipality of Brežice to see the aftermath of the storms.