Check the date at the top of the page, and you can find all the "morning headlines" stories here. You can also follow us on Facebook and get all the news in your feed.
A schedule of all the main events involving Slovenia this week can be found here
This summary is provided by the STA:
President defends decision to evacuate troops from Erbil
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor defended Slovenia's decision to evacuate troops from Iraq following an attack by Iran on the Erbil airbase where the six soldiers were stationed, saying that a sovereign country had the right to assess whether its soldiers were safe or not. He said the evacuation was merely an early rotation of the team deployed to Erbil to train the Kurdish fighters. Pahor also said in an interview with the public broadcaster TV Slovenija on Thursday that Slovenia remained a part of the international coalition against Islamic State.
Slovenia urges greater EU role in Middle East de-escalation
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar called on the EU to play a greater role in the de-escalation of tensions in the Middle East as EU foreign ministers held an emergency session. "I called for a greater role of the EU in forging dialogue to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East. Slovenia calls for respect of Iraq's sovereignty and international law, and condemns attacks on civilians, foreign units and cultural monuments," he said according to the Foreign Ministry. Cerar also reiterated Slovenia's commitment to remaining a partner in the fight against IS and continue training Iraqi security forces.
Central bank challenges act on bail-in repayments
LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian central bank mounted a Constitutional Court challenge against legislation that would require it to cover all repayments to those who lost their investments during the banking sector bailout of 2013. "The most controversial parts of the law affect monetary financing and the financial independence of the central bank," Banka Slovenije said. The act was passed in late-2019 and provides easier access to recourse for roughly 100,000 potential plaintiffs, both shareholders and holders of junior bonds, wiped out on instruction from the EU.
Adria Airways's licences to be auctioned off on 23 January
LJUBLJANA - The licences of bankrupt air carrier Adria Airways, including its air operator's certificate, will be put up for an action on 23 January at an opening price of EUR 45,000. Having received five non-binding bids for what has been left of Adria's assets, official receiver Janez Pustatičnik set the price based on the bids. It is impossible to assess the value of the assets on the basis of comparable market prices, he explained. Media reports suggest three Slovenian businessmen are interested in Adria's estate.
Concerns about 5G legitimate, says minister
LJUBLJANA - Public Administration Minister Rudi Medved rushed to reassure the public that concerns about 5G technology were given due attention. But while he deems the concerns legitimate, he also said that Slovenia needed 5G. Speaking after a protest against the introduction of the 5th generation wireless technology, Medved said the ministry was planning a debate this month, where it expects "a clash of all opinions". However, he said 5G was a technology of the future and it would be unacceptable for Slovenia to remain an isolated island.
End of procedure likely outcome of ruling on collaborationist general
LJUBLJANA - Jurist Miha Hafner indicated that the most likely outcome of a recent Supreme Court annulment of the guilty sentence for WWII collaborationist general Leon Rupnik, who was sentenced to death by firing squad, would be a termination of procedure. The annulment means the case will now be sent into retrial, and Hafner, an associate professor at the Ljubljana Faculty of Law, believes it will either be thrown out by the prosecution, or that the court will declare it cannot conduct a retrial since the accused is already dead. However, he was quick to point out that does not mean rehabilitation for the general.
Industrial output down in November
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's industrial output decreased by 1.1% in November compared to the month before but it was 1.2% higher than in November 2018, the Statistics Office said. Output was up on monthly level only in electricity, gas and steam supply, by 0.1%. In manufacturing, it dropped by 1.2% and in mining by 5.6%. Industrial production in capital goods industries was up by 1.7%, while in intermediate goods industries and in consumer goods industries it was down by 1.4% and 3.6%, respectively.
Police uncover driving licence test fraud
LJUBLJANA - Ljubljana police have busted a pair of suspects who have enabled 76 persons, in exchange for bribe money, to pass a written test which is a prerequisite for a driving licence. A 36-year-old working for Slovenia's Traffic Safety Agency is suspected of having given a 28-year-old his password for backdoor access to online tests taken by candidates for driving licence, so that he could correct their answers, Irfan Beganović from the Ljubljana Police Department told the press. House searches at 81 addresses around Slovenia were carried out this week, with some of the suspects being not only into bribes but also drugs and weapons.
Survey: Over 60% of Slovenians use social media
LJUBLJANA - As many as 82% of Slovenian residents aged 16 to 74 have their profile on at least one social media, which translates into 1.25 million people, or some 60% of Slovenia's population, shows the latest Media+ survey for 2019 by pollster Valicon. The most popular platform is Facebook, which had 995,500 users last year, followed by Instagram (450,500), Twitter (208,500), Pinterest (180,500) and Linkedin (161,000). The users said they spent at least one hour a day on social media, with Valicon adding the arithmetic mean was at slightly more than 80 minutes.
Visiting Ljubljana? Check out what's on this week, while all our stories on Slovenia, from newest to oldest, are here
If you're learning Slovenian then you can find all our dual texts here
