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This summary is provided by the STA:
Pahor, Rebelo de Sousa urge peaceful solution in Ukraine
LISBON, Portugal - President Borut Pahor and his Portuguese counterpart Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa called for a peaceful and diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis and urged for a faster EU enlargement to the Western Balkans, as they met at the outset of Pahor's two-day official visit to Portugal. The visit is dedicated to the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Pahor also met Prime Minister Antonio Costa and Speaker Eduardo Ferro Rodrigues.
Janša discusses Ukraine with European Council head
LJUBLJANA - PM Janez Janša joined European Council President Charles Michel and several EU counterparts by videocall to discuss the tense security situation in Eastern Europe, assistance to Ukraine and consequences of a potential Russian invasion. Michel stressed the EU's unity, solidarity and firmness regarding over the Ukraine situation. Janša spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart Denis Shmygal on the phone on Saturday, expressing support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and every country's right to choose its alliance.
Pahor congratulates Steinmeier on re-election as German president
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor congratulated Frank-Walter Steinmeier on his re-election as president of Germany. In his congratulatory message, Pahor highlighted their friendship and expressed his wish to deepen the relations between the two countries in the European spirit and on the basis of mutual respect. Pahor also wished Steinmeier success in his role as German president.
Opposition alleges political appointments of diplomats
LJUBLJANA - As seven candidates for ambassadors presented themselves behind closed doors to the parliamentary Foreign Policy Committee, the opposition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) said the candidates had ties to the coalition Democrats (SDS) and New Slovenia (NSi). The party called on President Borut Pahor, who signs off the appointments, to prevent political appointments just before the election. The ambassador selection procedure is conducted in secrecy until the host country endorses the candidate.
Sunday's case count down by a third week-on-week
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia recorded 3,601 new cases of coronavirus on Sunday, a week-on-week decline of more than a third and the lowest daily figure since early January. The weekly case count topped out at just over 51,000, down from nearly 89,000 in the week before. The NIJZ estimates there are currently just over 140,000 active cases in the country, 5,000 fewer than yesterday. Hospitalisations remained stable and a total of 18 patients died, according to government data.
SocDems propose scrapping most Covid measures
LJUBLJANA - The opposition Social Democrats (SD) proposed scrapping the recovered, vaccinated, tested rule in all activities except health and social care, as well as abolishing mandatory quarantine for contacts of infected people. They believe people should be free to decide whether to wear masks and self-test or not. "The time has come for easing, for normal life," MP Dejan Židan said, adding that people would have to learn to live with Covid-19.
Golob's party ahead of SDS in Delo poll
LJUBLJANA - The new Freedom Movement party headed by Robert Golob leads the latest public opinion poll conducted for the newspaper Delo, at 19.9%, ahead of the ruling Democrats (SDS), at 15%. The opposition Social Democrats (SD) are third at 7%, followed by the opposition Left and the coalition New Slovenia (NSi), at 5% each. The opposition LMŠ party and Connecting Slovenia alliance trail at 3.7% each.
SAB's platform focusing on solidarity, green transition
LJUBLJANA - The opposition Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) set out its platform for the 24 April general election with solidarity and green transition as one of the cornerstones with priorities such as stabilisation of public finances, restoration of the rule of law and improving the status of pensioners. SAB leader Alenka Bratušek said they were "aware that without a strong economy, there is no welfare state or higher pensions".
Ten parties support civil initiative's election demands
LJUBLJANA - Ten political parties, including several opposition parties but no ruling coalition party, have responded to the 138 demands set to parties ahead of the general election by the Voice of the People, an initiative which brings together over 100 NGOs and 1,800 individuals. The group said that the parties supported 77 of the demands, including commitment to Paris Climate Agreement goals, independence of the public broadcaster and legal protection of whistleblowers.
Slovenia's food processing industry presented at Expo
DUBAI, UAE - The Slovenian pavilion at the Dubai Expo hosted a business forum of the country's food processing industry, hearing about the country's sustainable orientation and high quality of its food. It was attended by Agriculture Minister Jože Podgoršek, who said that his visit to the United Arab Emirates was also about looking for new business partners. He will sign a major memorandum with counterparts from the UAE on Tuesday as a new step in cooperation in sustainable food production.
Over 70% of EU cohesion funds for 2014-2020 paid out
LJUBLJANA - By the end of 2021, EUR 2.23 billion was paid out to Slovenia under the 2014-2020 EU Cohesion Policy, which amounts to 73% of the total amount available - over EUR 3 billion, according to the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy. For the new period between 2021 and 2027, Slovenia will have EUR 3.214 billion available, divided into four funds - the Cohesion Fund, the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund and the Just Transition Fund.
Počivalšek calls for progress in reforming WTO
MARSEILLE, France - Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek urged for the WTO to contribute more to address the Covid pandemic and called for progress in reforming the organisation to make it more efficient as he took part in an informal meeting of EU trade ministers in Marseille. Apart from the situation at the WTO, the meeting also discussed trade with Africa before the upcoming EU-Africa summit, and trade relations with the US.
Slovenia submits UN resolution on early drug abuse prevention
VIENNA, Austria - Slovenia, a new member of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), submitted a draft resolution calling on the international community to step up efforts to prevent the use of illicit drugs in particular among children and youth. The CND will debate the resolution at its 65th session in mid-March. The EU had backed the initiative for the resolution, and in its submission Slovenia has been joined by France, with Japan, Mexico and Nigeria to follow suit soon, the Health Ministry said.
Slovenia's gross external debt at EUR 50.8bn in 2021
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's gross external debt totalled EUR 50.8 billion at the end of December 2021, the equivalent of 108.3% of GDP at current prices, as gross external claims amounted to EUR 51.2 billion, data from the central bank shows. Gross external debt was EUR 3 billion higher than in the same period a year ago, mainly due to heavier borrowing by the central bank. External claims rose by EUR 3.2 billion.
SIJ signs new EUR 230m loan agreement
LJUBLJANA - The steel group SIJ signed an agreement with a consortium of banks headed by NLB on a EUR 230 million syndicated loan with seven-year maturity to refinance existing loans, secure additional liquidity reserves for its long-term development, and finance investments into environmental efficiency. Under its new strategy, SIJ's investments focus on higher production efficiency and sustainable development, foremost environment and energy efficiency.
Salus reports revenue and profit growth
LJUBLJANA - Salus, the Ljubljana-based pharmaceutical wholesaler, increased sales revenue by 14% last year to EUR 458.28 million as net profit rose by 28% to EUR 13 million. In a regulatory filing with the Ljubljana Stock Exchange, the company said operating profit rose from EUR 12.26 million in 2020 to EUR 15.28 million in 2021 and EBITDA was up from EUR 16.16 million to EUR 19.67 million.
Slovenia win Olympic silver in ski-jumping team event
BEIJING, China - The Slovenian men's ski-jumping team, made up of Lovro Kos, Cene Prevc, Timi Zajc and Peter Prevc, won silver at the Olympics for Slovenia's seventh medal at the Beijing Games. This is Slovenia's fourth medal in ski-jumping at the Games after the mixed team won gold and Urša Bogataj won gold and Nika Križnar bronze in the women's individual event. Slovenia were in the lead after the first round, but were pipped to gold by Austria by 8.3 points. Bronze went to Germany.
NGO founder named Slovenian Woman of the Year
LJUBLJANA - Anthropologist and sociologist Nika Kovač, the founder and head of NGO the 8 March Institute, was named the Slovenian Woman of the Year 2021 by the women's magazine Jana and its readers on Sunday evening. The 8 March Institute has been warning of inequalities and the problems of the most vulnerable, the magazine said in a press release, adding: "She (Kovač) is aware that the power lies in the community and she has been proving this constantly."
Climbing star Garnbret in two films at Mountain Film Festival
RADOVLJICA - The Wall - Climb for Gold, a British documentary, opened the 16th Mountain Film Festival, which will feature 29 films from 13 countries ranging from mountaineering and climbing to mountain nature and culture until 19 February when the best films receive awards. The opening documentary follows the stories of four Olympic athletes, including Slovenia's Janja Garnbret, from qualification to their performance on the big stage.
Online fraud on the rise in Slovenia, phishing prevalent
LJUBLJANA - A press conference on online fraud heard that this type of crime is on the rise in Slovenia, with national Computer Emergency Response Team (SI-CERT) recording 3,197 reports of online fraud last year, of which 30% were reported cases of phishing. Maruša Maligoj of SI-CERT told the virtual press conference hosted by the NKBM bank that the actual number was actually much higher, as many fraud attempts remained unreported.
