STA, 10 March 2022 - Prime Minister Janez Janša has said the EU summit in Versailles should commit to Ukraine being guaranteed membership of the bloc similarly as the leaders did for the Western Balkan countries at the Thessaloniki summit in 2003. EU leaders should also pledge to do everything in their power for this to happen as soon as possible.
Similarly as in the case of the commitment to end the EU's reliance on Russian energy, Janša said Slovenia was against talking of one year or the other in debate on Ukraine's application for membership, arguing that promises what would happen in then years meant nothing to the Ukrainians.
Considering the draft statement, EU leaders are to pledge continued political, financial, material and humanitarian aid to Ukraine but are unlikely to give the country any clear guarantees over its membership of the EU that Ukraine wants.
The leaders are to reaffirm the wording from the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement that came into effect in September 2017 and that makes only a vague reference to membership: "The EU acknowledges the European aspirations of Ukraine and welcomes its European choice."
The EU leaders are to note that a few days ago EU member states called on the European Commission to draw up an opinion on Ukraine's membership application in record time. Pending this opinion, and without further delay, the member states will further enhance the ties and deepen the partnership, reads the draft statement.
Asked how far EU leaders could realistically go on the issue of Ukraine's EU membership, given the weak language in the draft statement, Janša said there were several drafts and they were changing, but that even that was a big improvement on the positions two weeks ago that it should not be mentioned at all.
He said they had spoken today with the leaders of most of the Ukrainian parliamentary parties, and he noted the remarkable unity among the Ukrainian people and politics. "Today is a very important day and I hope that the EU summit will be in tune with the times, which have changed drastically in the last two weeks," he stressed.
Asked how likely it was for the EU to offer Ukraine an Association Agreement plus, Janša said that amidst war the Ukrainian Symphony Orchestra played the European anthem in Kyiv's central square on Wednesday, and European flags were flying on many buildings shelled by the Russian army. "In Ukraine they are also fighting for Europe," he added.
He said that today they had also spoken with Petro Poroshenko, the former Ukrainian president, who he said was 100% behind the current President Volodymyr Zelenskyy despite being his political opponent.
Poroshenko said something worth considering, namely that a Ukrainian pilot in an old Mig-29 is doing more at the moment to defend European democracy than ten state-of-the-art F16s in a hangar, Janša said.
"The consequences of what happens in Ukraine will shape the years and decades to come in the EU and the rest of the world," said Janša, adding that the Australian PM had told him recently they were closely following developments in Ukraine, as it would depend on those how China would act in the Pacific.
The Versailles statement, to be adopted by EU leaders this weekend, is in Janša's view a strong document that sets out a political framework for the EU's real strategic autonomy, not only in energy, but also in food security and defence. There are few meetings and political documents of such importance, he said.
?? @JJansaSDS za Bloomberg TV o vprašanjih, ki bi jih morali zastaviti ruskemu predsedniku Putinu. pic.twitter.com/CDOwCtTPjr
— Vlada Republike Slovenije (@vladaRS) March 11, 2022
EU could offset cost of sanctions with seized Russian assets
STA, 10 March 2022 - Arriving for an EU summit in Versailles on Thursday, Prime Minister Janez Janša said an idea was taking shape in the EU to establish a fund to pool the money from frozen accounts of Russian oligarchs and state institutions. The funds would be used to repay the damage sustained by member states due to sanctions imposed on Russia.
Asked about Slovenia's position in the debate on compensation for the cost of sanctions in EU member states, Janša said that as far as Slovenian companies were concerned the Economy Ministry was working on solutions and had been in continuous contact with the affected companies.
When it comes to the European level and threats from Russia, he said the idea was being formed to set up a fund at European level to which the money currently frozen in the accounts of Russian oligarchs or state institutions would flow, and that it would simply be used to pay for the damage.
He regretted this was happening but said that "the one who started aggression must realise that there are two ends to every stick".
Asked whether there was any estimate of the damage suffered by Slovenia this far, the prime minister said that unlike the widely held belief by the public in Slovenia, Russia was not Slovenia's strategic economic partner and Slovenia had larger volumes of goods trade with at least 20 smaller countries.
He did say that any market loss was unnecessary, expressing the hope that the Russian nation, who contributed a lot to the European civilisation through history, would muster the strength to elect leaders who would not jeopardise others.
Commenting on rising food prices, Janša said these were only partly a result of the war in Ukraine and partly of higher energy prices, which had been rising even before Russia's aggression on Ukraine.
However, he said the EU had attained more than 80% food self-sufficiency through the common agricultural policy, which meant there could be shortages of some foodstuffs, but Europe would not go hungry.
Slovenia has recently also made great effort in this direction and has commodity reserves for turbulent times. "There may not be ten types of croissants on the table, but we will not go hungry," he said.
However, rising prices were a reminder that agriculture should be given appropriate attention.
Janša urges EU get rid of Russian energy ASAP
STA, 10 March 2022 - Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša called for the EU to end its reliance on Russian energy as soon as possible as he arrived for an EU summit in Versailles on Thursday. He condemned what he described as a series of crimes against humanity committed by Russia in Ukraine.
Asked by reporters how the EU would respond to the Russian bombardment of the maternity ward in Mariupol and whether time had come to ban imports of Russian gas and oil, Janša said it was not just the hospital's bombardment but a series of crimes against humanity in Russian aggression on Ukraine.
He said an important decision that should be adopted by the EU was to exclude Russian energy products as soon as possible. He said Slovenia was not advocating setting any date, but merely the commitment that this should be done as soon as possible. "Talking about that happening in ten year's time is an insult to those who are dying in the war," he said.
The step is not simple but if the EU joins forces it has some stockpiles for turbulent times and then this can be done in a time when it can still affect Russia's positions on Ukraine, he said.
Earlier, as he arrived at a meeting of the European People's Party held ahead of the EU summit, Janša said that Russia was committing war crimes in Ukraine. "Anyone can see that it is against all conventions," he said as quoted by Reuters.
