What follows is a weekly review of events involving Slovenia, as prepared by the STA.
FRIDAY, 23 August
GRAZ/KLAGENFURT, Austria - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec's statement of support for the construction of a second nuclear reactor in Slovenia caused upset in Austria. Michael Schickhofer, deputy governor of the federal state of Styria, urged the federal government to intervene, while Gernot Darmann, the leader of the Carinthia Freedom Party (FPÖ), announced "fierce opposition" to the project.
LENDAVA - President Borut Pahor said all totalitarian regimes started with small displays of intolerance and to defend a minority was to defend peaceful coexistence, as he addressed a ceremony on the eve of European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Totalitarian Regimes.
CELJE - Media reported that the Celje Higher Court had upheld a ruling under which Abanka has to fully refund two clients whose subordinated bonds were wiped out in the December 2013 bailout, interest included. The decision makes the Celje District Court's ruling from June 2018 final and must be implemented even if Abanka appeals at the Supreme Court.
LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian Chamber of Public Utilities said the Hungarian government had decided to ban imports of sewage sludge, a move that could spell serious trouble for Slovenia, which exports around 70,000 tonnes of sludge from its municipal wastewater treatment plants to Hungary a year. From September onwards, Slovenia could be left with 120-140 tonnes of sludge a day.
SATURDAY, 24 August
GORNJA RADGONA - The non-parliamentary People's Party (SLS) cancelled a protest against wolf attacks on livestock scheduled to be held on the margins of the AGRA fair. SLS leader Marjan Podobnik said they had been given assurances from a high government representative, but PM Marjan Šarec said that Podobnik's statement was "nonsense" and questioned the true reasons why the protest was cancelled.
SUNDAY, 25 August
TALLINN, Estonia - Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid will be one of the main guests of this year's Bled Strategic Forum. She told the STA she expects the meeting to bring an in-depth debate on sustainable development and answers as to how to prepare for a further global population rise and prevent the planet from suffering.
LJUBLJANA - The latest Mediana poll, released by POP TV, showed a 5.6-percentage point drop in the voter approval rating for the Marjan Šarec government, which was however still backed by 51.6% of respondents. Šarec also remained the most popular politician and his LMŠ the most popular party, but the poll also showed the share of undecided voters rising to over 30%.
MONDAY, 26 August
NOVO MESTO - The Novo Mesto District Court sentenced a 25-year-old Moroccan and a 18-year-old Algerian to 21-month prison sentences after they pleaded guilty to abducting a 79-year-old Slovenian near the Croatian border in May and using his car to get to Italy. The pair apologised to the abducted man and to Slovenia, expressing remorse and arguing they had suffered from mental problems due to the long journey to Europe.
LJUBLJANA - Infrastructure Minister Alenka Bratušek highlighted the need for Slovenia to remain at the cutting edge globally when it comes to the transition to clean energy, as she addressed the European Conference of the International Association of Energy Economics. "Slovenia is among the best and we plan on keeping it this way," she said.
LJUBLJANA - Some 100 young protesters gathered in front of the Brazilian Embassy to urge authorities to act on massive fires raging in the Amazonia. Calls for Slovenia to block the trade agreement between the EU and Brazil and to join economic sanctions against Brazil could also be heard at the protest organised by the Youth for Climate Justice movement.
TUESDAY, 27 August
BELGRADE, Serbia - Making an official visit to Serbia, PM Marjan Šarec and his Serbian counterpart Ana Brnabić noted the good relations between the two countries while also exploring ways to deepen both political and economic cooperation. There are no major open issues between the two countries, they are important economic partners and trade is expected to increase soon, said Šarec.
LJUBLJANA - The Foreign Ministry confirmed that career diplomat Vojislav Šuc will take over as Slovenia's new ambassador to Croatia, expectedly in September, his credentials having been accepted by the host country. Šuc will succeed Smiljana Knez, who has become an international relations advisor to President Borut Pahor.
LJUBLJANA - Matjaž Merkan, the former boss of the US-owned company Weiler Abrasives, was appointed the new chief executive of telecoms incumbent Telekom Slovenije, to replace Rudolf Skobe, who quit in April. In his first comment, Merkan expressed the confidence that Telekom would retain its leading position in the future, including by venturing into new fields.
LJUBLJANA - Pharma company Lek announced that its supervisory board had appointed Robert Ljoljo as the company's new chairman. Currently serving as the global head of the procurement strategy for the technical operations of Lek owner Novartis, Ljoljo will assume the new post on 1 September.
CELJE - Alenka Jovanovski won this year's Veronika Prize for a socially-engaged poetry collection called One Thousand Eighty Degrees (Tisoč Osemdeset Stopinj), in which she takes a critical view of today's heartless individualism and consumerism. The prize comes with a EUR 4,000 cheque.
WEDNESDAY, 28 August
LJUBLJANA - Fed up with waiting for a government bill, the Left presented its own bill to abolish top-up health insurance, whose passage it said would determine whether it would continue to support the Marjan Šarec minority government. It proposed offsetting the loss of revenue from top-up insurance with higher contributions and a new capital gains tax. Insurance companies warned of hasty changes, employers came out strongly against higher contributions, and unions welcomed the proposal.
CELJE - Celje police announced having apprehended several persons suspected of trafficking some 280 migrants across the Slovenian border in a sting that involved over 70 criminal investigators conducting house searches in and around the city. Eight suspects face trafficking charges and two will be also charged with offences related to illicit drugs.
THURSDAY, 29 August
LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec dismissed Brane Kralj, a close confidante, as secretary general of his party after the chief supervisor of the Official Gazette, Irena Prijović, reported him the Corruption Prevention Commission claiming he had instructed her to appoint former Court of Audit head and MEP Igor Šoltes as the gazette's new director.
HELSINKI, Finland - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar met his Croatian counterpart Goran Grlić-Radman on the sidelines of an informal EU ministerial. It was clear in advance that the border arbitration agreement would not be a topic, but Cerar did emphasise Slovenia's commitment to the rule of law.
LJUBLJANA - The government initiated repatriation procedures for 47 Venezuelans of Slovenian origin, who will be able to settle in Slovenia under a law that permits repatriation from countries hit by a severe political or economic crisis. Seven ministries will be involved and the effort coordinated by an interdepartmental task force, said Minister for Slovenians Abroad Peter Jožef Česnik.
LJUBLJANA - The government adopted a report on the drafting of the National Energy and Climate Plan, a document which will set the course of action for ten years until 2030. Faced with delays, the government will probably not be able to send the final version to Brussels by the end-of-the-year deadline, Infrastructure Minister Alenka Bratušek said.
LONDON, UK - The London-based oil and gas exploration company Ascent Resources will demand EUR 50 million in damages from Slovenia for delays in obtaining a permit to develop the Petišovci gas field in the north-east of the country, news portal Litigation Finance Journal reported. The British company earlier said it was preparing legal claims for damages.
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