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A schedule of all the main events involving Slovenia this week can be found here
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This summary is provided by the STA:
Pahor and Finnish President Niinistö urge focus on what unites EU
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor and his visiting Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinistö stressed the need for the EU to continue to focus on what its people have in common and what unites them as they met in Ljubljana. Pahor said he was content that Finland would take over the EU presidency in the first half of the year, meaning in the period after the EU election that will be marked by a complex process of a transformation of the bloc's institutions and their leadership. Niinistö spoke of the need to find an original European spirit, arguing views can differ but results will still come if there is a shared spirit. He also met PM Marjan Šarec and Speaker Dejan Židan.
Environment ministry pushes for special climate change bill
LJUBLJANA - Environment Minister Simon Zajc announced he would like the government to adopt a special bill to facilitate fighting against climate change. He believes having a special law is important to secure a broad political consensus. "The bill is important because we want the goal we'll set for 2050 to enjoy a very broad political consensus." At EU level, Slovenia will advocate setting a goal of reaching a neutral society by 2050, said Zajc, noting this put Slovenia among the ambitious EU members.
GZS head issues stirring appeal against agreed minimum wage growth
LJUBLJANA - Seeming to step up what trade unions have called a push by employers against fully enforcing the minimum wage increase backed by parliament last year, Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) director general Sonja Šmuc described the increase as a rushed step that would cause major damage, including to the most vulnerable groups. Trade unions and the Left called these claims as exaggerated.
Russian FM Lavrov paying working visit next week
LJUBLJANA - Russian FM Sergey Lavrov will pay a working visit to Slovenia on 28 and 29 May to meet Slovenian counterpart Miro Cerar as well as President Borut Pahor and PM Marjan Šarec, announced the Foreign Ministry, adding the visit was a continuation of bilateral dialogue. Lavrov and Cerar are expected to discuss bilateral relations, economic cooperation, and topical issues in the international community. Lavrov will also attend the unveiling of a bust of Davorin Hostnik (1853-1929), the author of the first Slovenian-Russian dictionary, in Šmartno pri Litiji.
TV Slovenija poll shows win for SDS+SLS, LMŠ as runner-up
LJUBLJANA - A poll commissioned by the public broadcaster TV Slovenija shows the joint list of the Democrats (SDS) and People's Party (SLS) as the likely winners of the EU election with a four-point lead on the ruling Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ). The SDS+SLS list polls at 21.2%, with the LMŠ at 17.4% and the Social Democrats (SD) in third at 13.4%. New Slovenia (NSi) polled at 8.4%, the Left at 6.8% and the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) at 6.4%. The Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) at 4.1%, National Party (SNS) at 3.1%, Greens at 2.3% and Modern Centre Party (SMC) at 1.2% are the only other lists that polled above 1%.
Krka Q1 net profit up 42% y/y to EUR 70.3m
NOVO MESTO - The pharma company Krka reported a net profit of EUR 70.4 million at group level for the first quarter of 2019, a 42% increase year-on-year. Revenue increased by 12% to EUR 378.5 million. The group recorded EUR 72.2 million of operating profit, a 17% year-on-year increase, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to EUR 99.9 million, a 10.5% improvement. Krka, which generates 94% of its sales on foreign markets, saw sales increase in all regions, but the largest absolute increase was recorded in East Europe, where sales grew by 15% to EUR 122.1 million. Revenue in Slovenia was up 3% to EUR 22 million.
Intereuropa's profit down in Q1
KOPER - Logistics company Intereuropa reported a net profit of EUR 831,000 for the first quarter of the year, down 35% on the year before, even as sales revenue rose 2% to EUR 39.7 million. Profit before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) slumped by 18% year-on-year to EUR 2.9 million, and operating profit was down 37% to EUR 1.3 million, the company said. Net financial debt was reduced by EUR 1.6 million compared to the end of 2018, to EUR 58.6 million.
Traffic safety supremo on chopping block over road conduct
LJUBLJANA - The man in charge of Slovenia's Traffic Safety Agency appears on the way out after he damaged an agency car in suspicious circumstances that he has been unwilling to explain. The governing board of the Traffic Safety Agency proposed today that Igor Velov be relieved of his duties after his car was found damaged earlier this week in what tabloids have suggested may have been drunk driving.
Slovenia mulling full ESA membership
PARIS, France - Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek met with Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA) Johann-Dietrich Wörner to discuss the possibility of Slovenia becoming a full-fledged member of the agency. Slovenia has been an associate member since December 2016, with its membership being valid until 2021, the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology said in a press release.
Two arrested after 300kg of heroin found in Koper last year
KOPER - Two suspected drug traffickers have been arrested after the police discovered more than 300 kilos of high-purity heroin in the port of Koper in April 2018, in what is one of the biggest drug busts in Slovenia in 20 years. The police, who are still searching for another two suspects, estimate the drug would net EUR 30-50 million, according to Koper Criminal Police head Dean Jurič. The drug was found when customs officers decided to check a container which arrived on a Turkish ship from Iran and was addressed to a company in the Ljubljana area.
More conflicts in prison last year, but fewer drugs
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian prisons recorded more conflicts and escapes last year, but there were fewer drug finds and assaults on employees, show prison statistics for 2019. Prison guards had to use restraint much more often, 120 times, as the number of conflicts between inmates rose to 231 along with the number of incidents requiring that the offender be moved to a separate space, Jasmin Musić, the head of the security department at the Prison Administration, told the press. On the other hand, the number of assaults on prison employees nearly halved to 12, with the number of drug finds decreasing as well, to 365.
Dummy bomb smuggled past security at Ljubljana airport in test
LJUBLJANA - The public broadcaster TV Slovenija reported that a security inspector of the Civil Aviation Agency pretending to be a passenger managed to bring a dummy explosive device past the checkpoints at the Jože Pučnik Airport Ljubljana last week. Citing unofficial but reliable sources, TV Slovenija said that the dummy explosive device went undetected by a member of the security personnel from GS4, a private security firm the airport operator Fraport Slovenija outsources security to. In correspondence with TV Slovenija, Civil Aviation Agency director Rok Marolt confirmed the agency had carried out a security check at the Ljubljana airport last week.
More measles cases this year already than in entire 2018
LJUBLJANA - The National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) has registered twelve cases of measles in Slovenia this year so far, including in a child who had not been vaccinated. The number of cases indicates an increase compared to last year, when nine cases were registered. Travelling, migrations and some parents' refusal to vaccinate their children also contribute to the increase. The majority of measles cases in Slovenia result from contracting the disease abroad, said the Health Ministry. Among this year's cases, three patients have been infected that way.
Icons from leading Russian museums on display in Ljubljana
LJUBLJANA - A collection of more than 80 icons from leading Russian museums will be on display at the City Museum in Ljubljana from this evening until 15 September. The exhibition Icons: Treasures from Russian Museums will be accompanied by the project Was ist Kunst Hugo Ball by art collective Irwin. The selected 85 icons from Russia's three biggest museums - the State Tretyakov Gallery, the Sergiev Posad State History and Art Museum and the Yaroslavl Art Museum - offer a unique insight into the Russian culture and spirituality, the museum said.
Desetnica Prize goes to poet and writer Roza
LJUBLJANA - Author, actor and street theatre producer Andrej Rozman - Roza has won this year's Desetnica Prize for youth literature for his collection of poems Pesmi iz Galerije (Poems from the Gallery). Pesmi iz Galerije is a witty and educational take on 35 celebrated paintings which are part of the National Gallery's permanent collection, said the Slovenian Writers' Association (DSP), which gives out the award.
Jan Polanc takes pink jersey at Giro d'Italia
GENOA, Italy - Slovenian cyclist Jan Polanc won the pink jersey at the Giro d'Italia after finishing in the leading group of cyclists in stage 12 of the race. Polanc (UAE Emirates) is followed in the overall rankings by Slovenia's star rider Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma), in what is the first Slovenian double lead ever at the Giro. Polanc finished sixth in today's stage, 25 seconds behind Italy's Benedetti Cesare, while Roglič was 24th.
Slovenia to host ice hockey division I world championship in 2020
BRATISLAVA, Slovakia - Slovenia performed poorly at the recent IIHF World Championship Division I in Kazakhstan, but a consolation prize is coming as the country is to be selected to host the second-tier world championship in 2020 and have a chance to return to the ice hockey elite with support of the home crowd. The formal decision to select the host of the 2020 World Championship Division I will be made on Friday, but it is already clear that this will be Slovenia as the country has remained the only candidate. Like in 2010, the tournament will be held in Ljubljana's Stožice Arena. The date of the event will be determined at Friday's IIHF congress in Bratislava.
