Erjavec and Finnish Minister Discuss Cooperation and EU Missions
Defence Minister Karl Erjavec received his Finnish counterpart Jyri Haekaemies in Ljubljana on Wednesday, discussing with him cooperation in defence and Slovenia's EU presidency priorities, which also include the bloc's peace-keeping missions in the world.
Erjavec reiterated his intention to propose to the government that 15 Slovenian soldiers instead of one be sent to the EU-led UN mission in Chad and the Central African Republic. Speaking to the press after the meeting, Erjavec welcomed the decision of Finland to make 60 of its soldiers available for the mission.
Highlighting the situation in the Western Balkans as a priority of the Slovenian EU presidency, Erjavec said Finland shared Slovenia's view on Kosovo. "We are supporting a solution acceptable for both sides...and the unity of the EU member states will be very important in this regard," Erjavec said.
"We agreed that the international forces need to stay in Kosovo and it is also very important that the EU stays united," Haekaemies confirmed. He expressed his conviction that Slovenia, as the first new member to preside over the bloc, would be up to the task, even though it will have to face some difficult issues.
The ministers assessed bilateral cooperation as very good and also touched on the Slovenian army's purchase of the eight-wheeled armoured personnel carriers built by Finnish defence contractor Patria. According to Erjavec, the two established the project was making very good progress.
Erjavec added that the counterpurchase programme involved in the deal had exceeded the planned scope and that the first vehicles manufactured by Slovenian company Gorenje were already expected to leave the assembly line next week.
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