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This summary is provided by the STA:
Janša meeting Zelensky in Kyiv with Polish and Czech PMs
LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša and his Polish and Czech counterparts, Mateusz Morawiecki and Petr Fiala, are headed for Kyiv to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. Janša tweeted that the purpose of the visit was to send Ukraine the message that it would soon be on the path towards the EU. "Ukraine is an European country. Every path in Ukraine is an European path. Soon, it will be an EU path, too," he said on Twitter.
Slovenian, Austrian presidents call for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine
VIENNA, Austria - Slovenian President Borut Pahor and Austria's Alexander Van der Bellen made an appeal for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, as they issued a joint statement following a meeting. "we condemn the Russian war aggression against Ukraine and calls for an immediate ceasefire to end the suffering of innocent people," reads the joint statement. The presidents also welcomed the decision by Kyiv and Moscow to continue negotiations. "Only political dialogue can lead to peace," they said.
Pahor says West wants ceasefire, talks and peace
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor said in an interview with current affairs show Studio City on Monday that the goal of the West was not to change the regime in Russia but to secure a ceasefire, diplomatic negotiations and peace. He stressed Russia must take the first step towards solving the conflict. "It is very important in any war who has the moral advantage and why. At this point, Russia is behind in that sense, so it must take the first step towards a ceasefire, perhaps even unconditionally," Pahor said.
Kövesi concerned about govt pressure on prosecution, judiciary
BRUSSELS, Belgium - European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi discussed challenges in cooperation with Slovenia at a joint session of the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, and the Budgetary Control Committee. She said the delay in appointment of Slovenia's delegated prosecutors had affected some investigations of the European Public Prosecutor's Office in other countries. Justice Minister Marjan Dikaučič rejected several of her comments.
Slovenia prepared to receive patients from Ukraine
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia is prepared to receive Ukrainians in need of urgent treatment and supports the Polish proposal for the transfer of patients, Health Minister Janez Poklukar said after an online meeting of the EU health ministers. Poklukar added that Slovenia's Health Ministry was actively involved in finding solutions for providing solidarity assistance to the Ukrainian population, in cooperation with the Civil Protection Service and several government bodies.
Fuel prices capped as heating oil price surges
LJUBLJANA - The prices of the two best-selling fuels, regular and diesel, are capped for a month starting today. Regular will cost 1,503 per litre, about six cents below the lowest price at the pump on Monday, and diesel will be capped at EUR 1,541, roughly 13 cents cheaper, under the government's decision on Monday. Meanwhile, heating oil prices rose by more than 24% to EUR 1.264 a litre. Only margins on heating oil have been capped since November 2021.
Trade unions opt out of meeting with education minister
LJUBLJANA - Trade unions representing employees in education and higher education, who went on strike last week demanding higher wages, decided not to attend a meeting with Education Minister Simona Kustec that was scheduled today after the Education Ministry insisted that the meeting be broadcast live via Facebook. Kustec invited trade unions to talks to discuss "open issues" and find possible solutions to the public sector pay system that could be introduced after the election.
Prices of imported oil and gas up 38% in a month
LJUBLJANA - Prices of imported crude oil and natural gas rose by almost 38% in January on the month before, which compares to a 2.3% overall increase in the prices of imported products. At the annual level oil and gas prices surged by 485%, whereas import prices overall rose by just over 26%, show the latest figures by Slovenia's Statistics Office.
Daily coronavirus case count highest in a month
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia confirmed 4,202 new cases of coronavirus on Monday, an increase of nearly a third compared to the week before and the highest daily figure in almost a month. The 7-day average of new cases is now at 2,149 and the 14-day notification rate per 100,000 of the population at 1,300, up by 152 and 80, respectively, from the day before, according to the National Institute of Public Health.
Talum reports no major damage due to Ukraine crisis so far
KIDRIČEVO - Talum, the Kidričevo-based aluminium manufacturer, has not any suffered significant damage as a direct result of the ongoing crisis in Ukraine so far, said CEO Marko Drobnič at an online forum of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry. However, he did warn of the effect of energy price hikes. According to him, the most significant influence of the Ukraine crisis is reflected indirectly in the already problematic increases of energy prices, as Talum is the most energy-intensive company in Slovenia.
Retailers rush to assure consumers of stable food supply
LJUBLJANA - The Chamber of Commerce (TZS) assured the public of sufficient food stocks and undisrupted supply chains in Slovenia as it denied reports that store shelves were empty. The chamber has conducted a survey among retailers, who have reported back that the supply of food and other products continues as per usual and stocks are sufficient. "Consumers can be perfectly calm. Retailers have sufficient stocks of foodstuffs. Supplies are running smoothly," TZS chairman Mariča Lah said in a press release.
Ajdovščina and Solčava win development breakthrough awards
LJUBLJANA - Ajdovščina won this year's Golden Stone award for the biggest development breakthrough among Slovenia's 212 municipalities. The award went to the municipality in western Slovenia as it "systematically put young people at the heart of its development strategy, introduced participatory budgeting and became highly self-sufficient in terms of energy". Solčava won the award in the small municipality category, and Logatec received the award for the healthiest municipality.
Tackling precarious work should be priority for next govt, debate hears
LJUBLJANA - Fighting precarious work should be one of the priorities of the next government, several politicians agreed at an online debate hosted by the Slovenian Press Agency (STA) in cooperation with the Ljubljana School of Economics and Business. They called for a definition of precarious work, measures to bring the rights of precarious workers closer to those of regular employees, and stricter labour inspections.
AmCham event notes importance of robust legal framework
LJUBLJANA - Participants in an AmCham event called for a robust and predictable legal and institutional framework and a functioning rule of law as a prerequisite for economic successful and to attract investment and talent. They also urged measures to boost domestic private investment and domestic capital accumulation. Jurist Matej Avbelj criticised slow resolution of disputes and legislative hypertrophy. He and NLB bank CEO Blaž Brodnjak also noted the damaging effect of the Swiss franc loan act.
Banks approve EUR 130m for broadband internet project
LJUBLJANA - Four major European banks, including the EBRD, will invest EUR 130 million in the RUNE project to build broadband optical networks in rural parts of Slovenia and Croatia. Rune Enia, the company in charge of the project in Slovenia, said so far, 90,000 addresses had been connected to the network in the two countries. The goal is to connect 200,000 addresses in Slovenia and almost 150,000 in Croatia. The project is already co-funded by the EU and the European Investment Bank.
Brežice hospital ordered to pay EUR 81,000 in damages
KRŠKO - The newspapers Delo and Slovenske Novice reported that the Krško District Court ordered the Brežice general hospital to pay EUR 81,238 in damages to the relatives of a 61-year-old cardiac patient who died after the hospital failed to transfer him to Ljubljana for treatment on time. Both sides have appealed against the ruling. Court-appointed witnesses the man would have a great chance of survival if he was moved to an institution suitable for treatment of such a patient on time in January 2012.
