EU leaders approved Slovenia's bid to join the eurozone on 1 January 2007 at their summit in Brussels on Friday, 16 June, in what is one of the last steps in the changeover process. The first expansion of the eurozone with one of the new EU member states is "an important and extremely positive" step forward in the economic and monetary integration of the EU, the leaders, including Slovenian PM Janez Jansa, said in their decision. This political decision comes a day after the European Parliament gave its endorsement to Slovenia's bid to become the first new member of the 12-strong eurozone. In his response to the decision, PM Janez Jansa said that Slovenia's euro switch on 1 January 2007 was historical, while entering the eurozone is the country's biggest achievement since joining the EU in May 2004.
The EU's nod for Slovenia's euro switch on 1 January 2007 is historical, while entering the eurozone is the country's biggest achievement since joining the EU in May 2004, PM Janez Jansa said at the close of the EU summit in Brussels on Friday. More »
The Foreign Ministry on Monday published a White Paper on the disputed parts of the border between Slovenia and Croatia, with Slovenian FM Dimitrij Rupel labelling the document a means of facilitating dialogue between the two sides. More »
Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader has announced a Croatian "blue paper" in response to Slovenia's white paper on the border with Croatia that was unveiled on Monday. More »
Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa and Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel opened the new Slovenian Embassy in Brussels on Friday, which is much bigger than the old one and which will allow the issuance of visas in line with Schengen standards. More »
In a Europe of regions it is important that the regions do not compete among themselves but cooperate, Governor General of Austria's Styria region Franz Voves said in a meeting with Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel. More »
The cabinet drafted Wednesday a SIT 170bn (EUR 710m) bill on the implementation of the 2008-2015 development programmes of the Slovenian Armed Forces, Defence Minister Karl Erjavec told the press after the cabinet's session. More »
The government on Wednesday drafted amendments to the national border control act, which, according to Interior Minister Dragutin Mate, establishes an appropriate legal basis for preventing illegal border crossings. More »
Slovenian president Janez Drnovsek discussed the possibility of constructing a gas pipeline across Slovenia to Italy with the chairman of the Russsian gas giant Gazprom Alexey Miller, who he met on Tuesday at the sidelines of the 10th International Forum in St. Petersburg. More »
Slovenia's gross domestic product measured at purchasing power parity reached 80% of the EU average in 2005, according to data released by Eurostat on Thursday. More »
The Public Agency for Entrepreneurship and Foreign investment is expected to open this year Slovenian branch offices in Duesseldorf, Bucharest, Istanbul and Milan, the first such Slovenian trade offices in the world. More »
Russian gas giant Gazprom has reiterated its interest in a pipeline that would run across Slovenia to Italy in a meeting between its president Alexei Miller and Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa on Saturday in Strunjan. More »
The Belgian banking and financial group KBC has begun procedures to reduce its stake in Slovenia's largest bank, NLB, KBC vice-chairman Andre Bergen has told the press. More »
Slovenia is a country that takes seriously its commitments to the NATO-led operations in Kosovo and Afghanistan, John P. Colston, NATO assistant secretary general for defence policy and planning, said in Ljubljana on Tuesday as the Defence Review Committee that he heads paid a visit. More »
The transport ministers of countries crossed by the tenth pan-European transport route between Salzburg and Thessaloniki, including Slovenia's Janez Bozic, signed a protocol on cross-border cooperation in Greece's Corfu on Friday. More »
A 20,000-strong crowd of Depeche Mode fans went into raptures on Wednesday evening, as the legendary British band made a stopover in Slovenia for the first time in their 26-year history during the world tour "Touring the Angel". More »
Ljubljana Summer Festival 2006 is to open on Monday with the famous New York Philharmonic Orchestra, led by conductor Lorin Maazel. The concert will honour Mozart by playing his Symphony No. 41 in C-Major, KV 551 "Jupiter" and Mahler's Symphony No. 1 in D-Minor. More »
Some ten people started on Sunday a protest walk from Ljubljana to Koper, staged by the non-parliamentary Active Slovenia party to protest against the planned gas terminals in the Gulf of Trieste. More »
Representatives of the Ministry of Culture, the municipality of Bled, the Bled Culture Institute and the National Museum have signed an agreement giving caretaker duties for the famous Bled Castle to the Bled Culture Institute. More »