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This summary is provided by the STA:
Slovenian, Portuguese German presidents stress importance of European idea
BRDO PRI KRANJU - Slovenian President Borut Pahor and his German and Portuguese counterparts, Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, highlighted the importance of Europe's unity and the European idea as they held a meeting in Brdo pri Kranju. The European idea is "the best thing that has happened on the European continent," Pahor told the press. He singled out the Conference on the Future of Europe, green and digital policies, the enlargement process, and the EU's role on the global stage as some of the things the Slovenian EU presidency will work on aside from the post-pandemic recovery.
Pahor says Slovenia not in political crisis
BRDO PRI KRANJU - President Borut Pahor said Slovenia was not in a political crisis, it was just in the midst of "heightened political uncertainty", as he addressed reporters after a meeting with his German and Portuguese counterparts. There is enough maturity and experience in Slovenian politics that the country may preside the Council of the EU at a level that fulfils the high expectations of all 27 member states, he said. "My view of the role of politics in these circumstances is that I cooperate with the government, which is appointed by the National Assembly, and of course to cooperate with the National Assembly in the same scope."
Janša attends Statehood Day celebration in Zagreb
ZAGREB, Croatia - Prime Minister Janez Janša and his wife, Urška Bačovnik Janša, attended a celebration of Croatian Statehood Day on Saturday at the invitation of Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković. Janša noted on arrival how both countries were celebrating thirty years of independence this year and the "brave steps we made to throw off the Yugoslav yoke and establish our own sovereignty and statehood". "And it we compare the time we are currently living with that time, we see that despite the problems we have, and despite the epidemic we are still facing, we're at the end of this struggle and we're successful."
New Celje bishop installed
GORNJI GRAD - Maksimilijan Matjaž was installed as the new Bishop of Celje, almost three months after his appointment was announced by the Vatican. The ceremony was held at the Cathedral of St. Hermagoras and Fortunatus in Gornji Grad, the biggest church in the Celje diocese, which allowed a larger number of guests and believers to attend in person, the Slovenian Bishops' Conference said. The mass was delivered by Apostolic Nuncio Jean-Marie Speich and Prime Minister Janez Janša was among the guests.
135 new coronavirus cases reported for Saturday, two deaths
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia recorded 135 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, down more than a tenth over the week before, as two patients with Covid-19 died. The 7-day average of new cases fell by three over the day before to 278 and the 14-day incidence per 100,000 population dropped to 204 from 211, according to data from the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ). The number of Covid-19 patients in hospital rose, by nine to 242, with the number of patients in intensive care level at 75.
NLB bank planning competence centre in Belgrade
LJUBLJANA - NLB bank is planning to establish a competence centre in Belgrade, Serbia, after the recent purchase of Komercijalna Banka there, as it struggles to fill R&D vacancies in Slovenia. The bank said the demand for data scientists, data analysts, IT analysts, and software developers has been growing as banking increasingly digitises, but there is simply not enough qualified staff in Slovenia.
