MUNICH, Germany - President Borut Pahor called for dialogue and a peaceful solution to the Ukraine crisis as he arrived at the Munich Security Conference.
LJUBLJANA - The teachers' trade union SVIZ said its members overwhelmingly endorsed the decision for school and kindergarten teachers to start a general strike on 9 March to demand for higher pay for teaching and non-teaching staff plus bonuses for extra work connected with the Covid-19 pandemic.
LJUBLJANA - The government decided to waive the quarantine requirement for those in high-risk contact with an infected person and end contact tracing. It also abolished the requirement that passengers entering Slovenia have to produce a Covid pass.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Slovenia's eight MEPs addressed a letter to the European Commission alerting it to a seizure of church bells in Dolina, a village near the Italian city of Trieste populated by the Slovenian minority. The MEPs would like to see the Commission act on this incident that they say encroaches on religious freedom and local cultural tradition.
MARIBOR - Chipmaker NVIDIA signed a partnership with Digital Transformation Minister Mark Boris Andrijanič that will support the development of an artificial intelligence ecosystem in Slovenia and stimulate new ICT talents in creative AI environments.
LJUBLJANA - The supervisory board of Petrol approved the plan of the energy company's management to build three large solar power plants in Croatia, worth a total of EUR 17 million. Planned to start producing electricity at the beginning of 2023, the expected output the three facilities will be 29 gigawatt hours (GWh).
KOPER - The port operator Luka Koper said its net profit had contracted by 1% to EUR 31.8 million last year despite a 9% increase in revenue, which amounted to EUR 228.4 million. Total throughput hit 20.8 million tonnes, up 7% on the year before.
SLOVENJ GRADEC - The 16th annual auction of prime timber in Slovenia brought new records, as a quilted sycamore maple from state-owned forests fetched a record price of EUR 23,800 per cubic metre or EUR 47,838 for the whole log.
LJUBLJANA - The Ljubljana criminal police said they had busted a drug trafficking ring with over 80 members and seized almost 600 kilos of cannabis and several kilos of heroine as part of an international investigation that started in 2018.
SATURDAY, 19 February
MUNICH, Germany - President Borut Pahor held several bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, focussing on the Ukraine crisis, including with his Finish and Montenegrin counterparts Sauli Niinistö and Milo Đukanović.
LJUBLJANA - The latest public opinion poll conducted by Parsifal saw the ruling Democrats (SDS) in the lead, with party's support rising by 3 percentage points to 22.9% in the past month. The Freedom Movement headed by Robert Golob comes second, on 13.2% support, up by 2.8 percentage points.
ROME, Italy - Prime Minister Janez Janša and Cardinal Franc Rode featured as witnesses in a documentary on summary executions in the wake of Second World War that was aired on Rai 2, the second channel of the Italian public broadcaster.
LJUBLJANA - LPS or Last Pizza Slice, a band of five teenagers, won the contest to represent Slovenia at the 66th Eurovision song contest in Turin with the song 'Disko' (Disco).
NEW YORK, US - The first space exhibition at the International Space Station (ISS) will feature two miniature artworks by Slovenian artist Eva Petrič as part of the miniature works contributed by 65 artists from around the world.
SUNDAY, 20 February
MUNICH, Germany - President Borut Pahor urged stepping up EU enlargement to the Western Balkans as he appeared in a panel debate at the Munich Security Conference, saying the EU was the only answer to the issues troubling the region. FM Anže Logar said the key was to resolve issues in the region stemming from the past.
BEIJING, China - Slovenian athletes won seven medals at the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, which puts the country second only to Norway in medals per capita. Overall, Slovenia ranked 15th among all countries on the Olympic medal table.
MONDAY, 21 February
LJUBLJANA - Virtually all Covid-19 restrictions were lifted in Slovenia except for the wearing of masks and hand sanitising indoors. Proof of recovery, vaccination or negative test (PCT) is only be required in hospitals, care homes and prisons. There are no more caps on gatherings or numbers allowed inside shops, hospitality or other services establishments, and no restrictions to opening hours.
LJUBLJANA - The government decided to increase the capital of Slovenia's custodian of state assets, Slovenian Sovereign Holding, by a sum that will allow it to exercise its pre-emptive right to purchase private fund York's share in Slovenian tourism company Sava.
LENDAVA - Slovenian and Hungarian PMs Janez Janša and Viktor Orban stressed as they signed an agreement on cooperation to develop the border areas populated by the countries' respective minorities in Lendava that the minorities were a "bridge for cooperation between two friendly countries" and economic ties between them brought double benefit.
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly endorsed the government's proposal not to allow a referendum on a law ratifying the agreement with the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation. The opposition Left, which initiated the referendum bid, is now planning to appeal to the Constitutional Court.
LJUBLJANA - The government approved material aid for Ukraine and Madagascar as well as a donation of Covid-19 vaccines to Namibia and COVAX. Through the EU civil protection mechanism Slovenia will send EUR 163,000 worth of sleeping bags, rubber boots, diesel generators, gloves and face masks to Ukraine in response to the country's appeal for aid.
LJUBLJANA - The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption cleared PM Janez Janša over his socialising with a well-known lobbyist and a businessman while holidaying on the island of Mauritius when he was still an opposition leader. The commission closed the case after it had found no breach of anti-graft legislation.
MARIBOR - The supervisory board of the electricity distributor Elektro Maribor appointed acting chairman Jože Hebar for a full-fledged term. He was appointed acting chairman in November after the dismissal of Boris Sovič, who had led the company for nine years.
TUESDAY, 22 February
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's officials unanimously condemned Russia's recognition of the separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine as blatant violation of international law. PM Janez Janša called for the EU to offer Ukraine the prospect of full membership and Defence Minister Matej Tonin announced the government's top officials agreed Slovenia was ready to support the country's membership of the EU and enhance its troops' presence in eastern NATO member states.
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly approved the government package to mitigate the impact of high energy prices, whose primary focus is on aid for households and citizens, as it provides for a one-off payment for some 710,000 Slovenians.
LJUBLJANA - Defence Minister Matej Tonin discussed Russia's actions in Ukraine in an interview with the CNN, underscoring that unity was the Western allies' strongest tool and warning that something bad could happen in the Western Balkans, in particular Bosnia-Herzegovina.
PARIS - FM Anže Logar attended the first ministerial forum on cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region organised by the French EU presidency, noting the importance of good and sustainable integration between Europe and the region.
LJUBLJANA - MPs endorsed a government-sponsored act that temporarily increases the scope of temporary or casual work available for pensioners to help the labour market recover in the wake of Covid-19 in what the government says will help mitigate labour shortages.
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly endorsed changes to the act on state border control that bring border municipalities EUR 2.5 million in assistance to cover the costs they incur as a result of enhanced border patrolling by police and soldiers to prevent illegal migration.
LJUBLJANA - Ferenc Horvath, the MP for the Hungarian minority, will have to pay a EUR 1,000 fine after a district and a higher court upheld the anti-graft watchdog's view that he is in breach of the incompatibility of dual offices as he also serves as the head of a minority organisation.
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly passed changes to the investment promotion act that aim to raise the productivity of the Slovenian economy and the standard of living by facilitating companies' adjustment to the demands of the digital and green transition.
NOVO MESTO - Revoz, the Slovenian subsidiary of Renault that cut production to one and a half shifts last November and then announced further cuts in January for April, will move to the announced single shift a month early.
WEDNESDAY, 23 February
LONDON, UK - FM Anže Logar met his British counterpart Elizabeth Truss to sign a declaration of intent to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries. They agreed that Slovenia and the UK are partners and allies, sharing common values and similar interests on many issues and policies. Logar also met the president of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference, Alok Sharma.
LJUBLJANA - The Foreign Ministry summoned Russian Ambassador Timur Eyvazov over Russia's recognition of independence of the eastern Ukrainian regions Donetsk and Luhansk. The ambassador was informed of Slovenia's resolute opposition to Russia's actions along the Ukrainian border and unilateral recognition of the two regions.
BOLOGNA, Italy - Education Minister Simona Kustec and her Italian counterpart Patrizio Bianchi urged the formation of a task force for cooperation in minority eduction that would address open issues.
MARIBOR - The newspaper Večer reported that Maribor-based radio station Radio City had been acquired by companies Media Moment and Radio Factory, owned by Hungarian Gabor Deak. It said Deak is linked to the circles of Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
LJUBLJANA - The anti-graft watchdog said it had found breach of integrity by Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek, noting he interfered in the work of the Commodity Reserves Agency in relation to a purchase of ventilators from the supplier Geneplanet.
LJUBLJANA - The police dealt with 693 cases of illegal migration in the first month of 2022, more than double the figure recorded in January last year. By far the largest number of illegal migrants intercepted last month were Afghans, which is to be expected given the situation in the country, the police said.
LJUBLJANA - The newspaper Delo reported that the Kranj Local Court had issued convictions for five men involved in a Covid-19 vaccination fraud where one of them got vaccinated on behalf of the other four. One was given a sentence of ten months in prison, while the other four were fined.
THURSDAY, 24 February
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Arriving for an emergency EU summit in Brussels, Prime Minister Janez Janša urged the severest possible sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine as well as providing humanitarian, economic and military help to Ukraine. Together with his Polish counterpart Mateusz Morawiecki it called on the European Council to grant Ukraine's accession to the EU by 2030.
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's top officials and parties condemned in the strongest terms the Russian attack on Ukraine, with Prime Minister Janez Janša saying it was unprecedented military aggression against the country. President Borut Pahor called the attack a grave violation of international law and UN principles of peaceful resolution of disputes. In solidarity with Ukraine, the country's flag was hoisted on the Government Palace and the Presidential Palace.
LJUBLJANA - Natalia Markevich, charge d'affaires at the Ukrainian embassy in Ljubljana, thanked Slovenia for its support and assistance to Ukraine following Russia's invasion.
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor presented state decorations to Tatjana Rojc, the Slovenian serving as a senator in Rome, and minority officials Walter Bandelj and Ksenija Dobrila as well as Trieste Mayor Roberto Dipiazza.
LJUBLJANA - The Slovenia-based banking group NLB said it had posted a record profit of EUR 236.4 million in 2021, a substantial growth compared to the previous year, excluding effects from the acquisition of Komercijalna Banka in Serbia.
LJUBLJANA - The Environment and Spatial Planning Inspectorate said that Slovenia had exported almost 150,000 tonnes of waste to third countries in 2021, some 25% less than in 2020. The amount of plastic waste was reduced by just over 40%.
KRŠKO - Gen Energija, the company managing the Slovenian half of the NEK nuclear power station, got an interim head, as the company's long-serving director general Martin Novšak was dismissed. Until a new head is appointed financial director Gordana Radanovič will serve as interim head.
