Latest News from Slovenia
First of seven Koper-Divača rail track tunnels broken through
Divača – The first of the seven tunnels on route of the new railway linking the port town of Koper with the Divača railway junction was broken through on Monday with officials telling the ceremony they could finally see a light at the end of the tunnel.
PM Golob indicates polycentric development of Slovenia
Maribor – Prime Minister Robert Golob visited Maribor, Slovenia’s second largest city, on Monday, underlining that the only right way forward for the country is polycentric development. He believes the eastern half of the country needs a capital that would equal Ljubljana, adding that Maribor has a lot to offer.
Slovenia’s stance on Ukraine war to be discussed in parliament
Maribor – Slovenia’s stance on the war in Ukraine will be shaped by the parliamentary Foreign Policy Committee, Prime Minister Robert Golob said on Monday in response to a letter by several prominent academics and politicians urging the new government to take a stance encouraging Ukraine and Russia to engage in serious peace talks.
Slovenia failed to notify Brussels of pandemic-related border checks
Luxembourg – Slovenia did not inform the European Commission of the re-introduction of border checks on EU borders due to the Covid pandemic in the summer of 2020 and the spring of 2021 and the Commission did not check compliance with Schengen rules, the European Court of Auditors has found.
August most popular month to tie the knot
Ljubljana – Close to 6,000 couples got married in Slovenia last year and 58 same-sex couples registered formal civil unions. August was the most popular month for a wedding, data from the Statistics Office shows.
Slovenia women’s team take bronze at European Archery Championships
Munich – The Slovenian women’s team won bronze in the Olympic recurve bow discipline at the European Archery Championships in Munich on Sunday.
Ana Umer, Urška Čavič and Nina Corel defeated Denmark 5:3 (201:196) in the bronze medal match for what is the best result for Slovenian women recurve bow archers since the 2005 Mediterranean Games in Almeria.
Golnik clinic tracks progress in lung cancer treatment
Golnik – The Golnik Clinic of Respiratory and Allergic Diseases is one of Slovenia’s main lung cancer treatment facilities, diagnosing about 40% of some 1,500 new cases of the disease that get detected in the country every year. Its register of patients shows encouraging progress in treatment in the past decade.
Another win for Slovenia in ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup
Prague – Luka Božič won Sunday’s ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup race in Prague only a day after his Slovenia teammate Peter Kauzer accomplished the same feat at the venue on the Vltava River.
Božič finished 7th in the semi-final but then went on to sweep the field. France’s Nicolas Gestin came in second and Czech Lukas Rohan finished third.
Dutchman Hoogerland defends Franja Marathon victory
Ljubljana – Dutch rider Johnny Hoogerland won the 41st Franja Marathon on Sunday to defend last year’s victory in what is Slovenia’s largest amateur cycling event.
The 39-year-old former Tour de France polka-dot jersey winner finished the 156-kilometre race in 3 hours, 37 minutes and 28 seconds, beating an Italian breakaway group.
Slovenia 7th globally in environmental performance
Ljubljana – Slovenia ranks seventh out of 180 countries in the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), which is calculated by Yale University to assess the state of sustainable environmental care.
Denmark tops the rankings with a score of 77.9, followed by the UK with 77.7 and Finland with 76.5. Malta scored 75.2 points, Sweden 72.7 and Luxembourg 72.3.
Slovenia, a nation of small towns and villages
Ljubljana – Nearly half of incorporated places in Slovenia have fewer than 100 residents and about a quarter of those number fewer than 50 people, shows data recently released by the Statistics Office. The most densely populated settlement is the coastal town of Piran.
S&P Global and DBRS Morningstar affirm Slovenia’s ratings
Ljubljana – The Toronto-based credit rating agency DBRS Morningstar has affirmed Slovenia’s A rating and the New York-based agency S&P Global Ratings has affirmed the country’s AA- rating, both with a stable outlook, the Finance Ministry said on Saturday.
Commemoration of Ljubelj liberation calls for peace and end to evil
Ljubelj – A ceremony marking the 77th anniversary of the liberation of the Ljubelj concentration camp noted the importance of recalling horrible events in the past to prevent new horrors of war. Speakers at Saturday’s ceremony urged efforts to prevent the spread of evil and called for peace in light of the war in Ukraine.
FM Fajon notes importance of credible EU enlargement policy
Thessaloniki – Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon attended a ministerial of the South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) in Thessaloniki on Friday, and held a number of bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Greece event. In the debate, Fajon noted the importance of a credible EU enlargement policy for the reform efforts of the Western Balkans.
Koper port completes south quayside extension
Koper – Luka Koper, Slovenia’s sole maritime port, has wrapped up an EUR 45.6 million investment by acquiring an operating permit for the last section of the new extension of Quay 1, a release from the company said. The work on this last bit started in mid-2020 with part of the funding secured in the NAPA4CORE project as part of the EU’s Connecting Europe facility.