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This summary is provided by the STA:
Janša likens Bucha killings to Katyn massacre
LJUBLJANA - PM Janez Janša labelled the atrocities Russia is believed to have committed in Bucha, a city close to Kyiv, crimes against humanity, likening them to the 1940 execution of Poles in Katyn by the Soviet Union. "These are massive crimes against humanity," he said on Twitter yesterday, adding that the Russian army behaved "as a horde of KGB executioners at Katyn". In subsequent tweets he suggested that the West could have prevented the massacres by giving Ukraine and Georgia the prospect of NATO membership in 2008.
Ukraine, Bay in Piran in focus of Slovenia-Croatia-Italy meeting
ZAGREB, Croatia - Foreign Minister Anže Logar met his Croatian and Italian counterparts, Gordan Grlić Radman and Luigi Di Maio, in Croatia's Zaprešić to assess the ongoing trilateral cooperation in the north Adriatic and discussed proposals for further cooperation, which was put into words in a joint statement. The statement strongly condemns Russia's invasion of Ukraine and supports Ukraine and its people. Logar and Di Maio urged adopting a new package of sanctions against Russia. Logar and Grlić Radman talked about an "agreement about an agreement" on fishing in the border Bay of Piran.
Minister: Slovenia could get third of its LNG from Krk this year
KRK, Croatia - Croatia is soon to publish an open call for booking the increased capacity of its LNG terminal on the island of Krk, 300 million cubic metres per year, and Slovenia is interested in leasing it, Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec said after he met Croatian Economy Minister Tomislav Ćorić. The additional capacity would cover about a third of Slovenia's gas demand this year and significantly reduce the country's dependency on Russia's gas.
Painter Emerik Bernard dies aged 84
LJUBLJANA - Emerik Bernard, one of the most important Slovenian painters and representatives of late Slovenian modernism and postmodernism, died aged 84, the MMC news portal reported. Art historian Tomaž Brejc described his contribution to Slovenian art as the most visible and successful synthesis of the principles of modernism with the artistic inventions of postmodernism. Bernard received a number of awards, including the most prestigious national award, the Prešeren Prize for outstanding achievements in fine arts in 1997.
Janša congratulates Orban on re-election
LJUBLJANA - PM Janez Janša congratulated Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his Fidesz party, which secured the fourth consecutive win in Sunday's election. "It's good to have friends as neighbours," Janša wrote on Twitter. Janša and Orban are close political allies and Orban had endorsed Janša prior to the 2018 general election. Slovenia holds an election in three weeks.
Analyst says Orban has established "ideological hegemony"
LJUBLJANA - The result of Sunday's election in Hungary is certainly a surprise to all, including the ruling party. Fidesz has apparently managed to establish an "ideological hegemony" where the opposition finds it very hard to promote an alternative narrative of reality, historian and political analyst Luka Lisjak Gabrijelčič commented on Hungary's election outcome for the STA. As for the outcom's possible impact on the upcoming election in Slovenia, he thinks opposition parties will benefit the most, because the result will act as an "incentive for exceptional mobilisation", having shown "they must not rest on laurels".
Pahor congratulates Vučić on re-election
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor congratulated Aleksandar Vučić on his re-election as Serbia's president in Sunday's election in a phone call. He wished Vučić success in performing his duties and they both noted the importance of mutual trust and a continuation of the excellent relationship between the two countries, Pahor's office said, adding they were keen to hold an informal meeting soon.
Analyst says election result in Serbia was expected
LJUBLJANA - The only news after Sunday's presidential and general elections in Serbia is the result of opposition parties, while everything else was known in advance, as all mechanism for election victory had been in the hands of President Aleksandar Vučić, Borut Šuklje, a former Slovenian diplomat, told the STA. "Everything is subordinated to one person" in Serbia with the government being practically non-existent, said Šuklje.
Watchdog finds PM in conflict of interest over BAMC appointment
LJUBLJANA - The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption found PM Janez Janša was in a conflict of interest by voting for the appointment of Franci Matoz, his long-time lawyer, for a top job at the Bank Assets Management Company (BAMC) in July 2021. Reacting on Twitter, Janša criticised the watchdog for failing to find flaws in Court of Audit President Tomaž Vesel's work for FIFA "for EUR 20,000 a month" or the "salaries and bonuses of EUR 45,000 per month" of former Gen-I chairman Robert Golob.
Freedom Movement one point ahead of SDS in RTV Slovenija poll
LJUBLJANA - The Freedom Movement has narrowly overtaken the ruling Democrats (SDS) in the latest opinion poll commissioned by the public broadcaster TV Slovenija from Mediana and is now one percentage point ahead. The party of Robert Golob gained 1.7 points since a month ago to 19.7% as PM Janez Janša's party added just 0.4 points to 18.7%. The Social Democrats (SD) in third polled at 8.2%, half a point up from March, and the fellow opposition party, the Left, improved by 0.8 points to 6.4%.
Minister Jaklitsch completes tour of Canada
VANCOUVER/TORONTO/OTTAWA, Canada - Minister for Slovenians Abroad Helena Jaklitsch wrapped up a busy week-long tour of the Slovenian communities in Canada in Vancouver on Saturday, after stopping in Toronto and Ottawa. Apart from visiting Slovenian associations, she also met with businessmen of Slovenian descent and visited their companies. She thanked Canadian Slovenians for preserving Slovenian heritage and identity and for their contribution to Slovenia's international recognition 30 years ago.
Exports up by 19% y/y in February as imports surge by 50%
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's merchandise exports were up by almost 19% year-on-year in January to EUR 36 billion, but exports surged by more than 50% to EUR 4.2 billion, the latest Statistics Office data shows. Exports to EU countries, which account for roughly two-thirds of Slovenia's overall trade, rose by 21%, whereas exports to third countries were up by a more modest 14.2% In the first two months, the trade deficit topped a billion euros.
Fortenova becomes sole owner of retailer Mercator
LJUBLJANA - Croatian group Fortenova has become the sole shareholder of Slovenia's largest retailer Mercator after squeezing out all remaining small shareholders, leading to a suspension of trading on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange pending a decision on delisting. Fortenova, which owned roughly 90% of Mercator prior to the squeeze-out, said that it had paid EUR 22.4 million for the outstanding shares. The transaction completes a process that began in 2014 with the purchase of Mercator by Croatian retailer Agrokor, said Fabris Peruško, CEO of Fortenova, the company that took over Agrokor's healthy assets when it went bankrupt.
Summit Leasing Slovenija expands to Croatian market
LJUBLJANA - Summit Leasing Slovenija obtained regulatory approval to complete its acquisition of Mercedes-Benz Leasing Croatia, which offers financing services for the purchase of cars, vans, trucks and buses of the Daimler Group on the Croatian market. The leasing arm of the NKBM bank acquired the Croatian leasing company based in Zagreb from Daimler Mobility, a company based in Stuttgart, which is a subsidiary of Daimler. The transaction was finalised on 1 April.
Coronavirus infections down further
LJUBLJANA - Another 802 new coronavirus infections were detected in Slovenia on Sunday as the downward trend continued. Health Ministry data shows 179 patients are in hospitals due to Covid, including 28 in intensive care. Four Covid patients died yesterday after no data was released for Saturday and Friday. The 7-day average of new cases dropped to 2,377 and the 14-day incidence per 100,000 people to 1,728.
Golfer Babnik third in first major of the season
LOS ANGELES, US - Slovenia's best professional golfer, 18-year-old Pia Babnik, set a new milestone by taking third place in the first major tournament of the season, the Chevron Championship in California, US. This is by far the best result any Slovenian golfer has ever achieved. Babnik finished the four-day tournament with a prize money of five million dollars at 11 under par to finish behind two Americans, Jennifer Kupcho (-14) and Jessica Korda (-12).
2Cellos mark 30 years of Slovenia, Croatia UN membership
NEW YORK, US - Slovenia and Croatia marked the 30th anniversary of their UN membership in New York on Sunday with a concert by world-renowned Slovenian-Croatian duo 2Cellos, who thus started their farewell world tour. The concert at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn was also marked by expressions of solidarity with Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression. Ukrainian Ambassador to the UN Sergiy Kyslytsya attended the concert along with Slovenian and Croatian ambassadors to the UN, Boštjan Malovrh and Ivan Šimonović.
Putin's portrait filled with blood of Ukrainians projected on buildings
LJUBLJANA - A portrait of Russian President Vladimir Putin filled with the blood of Ukrainians fighting for their country was projected onto several buildings, including government buildings, in the centre of Ljubljana on Monday evening, to draw attention to the Russian aggression of Ukraine. The project is the work of Russian-born conceptual artist Andrei Molodkin, who is based in France, and was executed in collaboration with the Slovenian art gallery Fotopub.
