STA, 6 June 2020 - Slovenia will open its border with Italy very soon, Foreign Minister Anže Logar said on Saturday as he hosted his Italian counterpart Luigi Di Maio in Ljubljana. Though not naming a date, Logar repeated several times that he looked forward to 15 June with optimism.

Logar said that Slovenia followed the situation in Italy on a daily basis and that it would open its border as soon as the health situation there allows it.

He said that the situation in Italy was improving very fast, infection-wise. There were, however, differences between regions, but all have made significant progress, said Logar.

He added that the opening of the border will have to be green-lighted by the National Institute for Public Health (NIJZ) before this decision is made by the government.

Minister @AnzeLog je italijanskemu kolegu @luigidimaio izrazil sožalje za vse žrtve epidemije in priznanje za učinkovite ukrepe, ki jih je #Italija uvedla za zajezitev #covid19. V času po pandemiji moramo za obnovo gospodarstva v Evropi stopiti skupaj.#StrongerTogether #EU pic.twitter.com/vJd3XTH8Tz

— SLOVENIAN MFA (@MZZRS) June 6, 2020

"I'm looking forward to 15 June with optimism," he said several times during the joint statement with Di Maio.

Di Maio meanwhile thanked his host for showing optimism and underlined that the border opening for tourism was vital for the economies of both countries.

The Italian minister also said that a high level of caution will be needed in the next 10 days to prevent the number of coronavirus infections from increasing once again.

Logar said that Italy was a very important neighbouring country for Slovenia and a key economic partner, while bilateral relations are at a high level.

Turning to EU issues, Di Maio said Europe needed to become a place that unites, not divided. It has to become more united to cope with the problems ahead, both economic and health issues, he said.

The pair also discussed the forthcoming return of National Hall in Trieste to the Slovenian minority there, en event that Logar described as a landmark. "This will be an important landmark that will lift bilateral relations to a new level."

Di Maio added that as Italy changed electoral legislation, the Slovenian minority must be secured a place in parliament.

He also met Slovenian President Borut Pahor, with the latter pointing to regular contacts with his counterpart Sergio Mattarella. The presidents will attend the ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of National Hall arson by Fascists together.

Pahor's office also said in a press release that cooperation between the Italian government and local authorities will be key so that everything is ready for the return of the National Hall to the Slovenian community on 13 July.

RTV Slovenia, the national broadcaster, reports that Rogaška Crystal, Fraport (Ljubljana International Airport) and Hoedlmayr Logistics (based in Logatec) have all announced layoffs which will occur in the near future.

Rogaška Crystal (Steklarna Rogaška), which was facing a lack of orders even before the crisis and mostly relies on exports to the United States, where the industry has been hit severely by the recent events of social unrest, first announced that 200 workers would lose their jobs, but managed to reduce the number to 138 layoffs. Eighty-one of its workers will lose their jobs by the end of this week, and 56 will have to leave the company in September.

Job losses have also been announced in Fraport (Ljubljana International Airport), which is expected to lay off 120 people, which amounts to around a quarter of all of the airport’s employees, according to unofficial information.

Since cars sales almost completely halted during the lockdown, Hoedlmayr Logistics, a car transportation company, also announced plans to lay off 113 of their 166 employees. Most of these are foreign workers, with just 22 Slovenian citizens.

Already in April Hisense, the Chinese owner of Gorenje, a major European manufacturer of home appliances with its main production facility located in Velenje, announced that about 1,000 of its staff would lose their jobs. Later on in May, Revoz, the Renault subsidiary located in Novo mesto, also announced layoffs for 400 of its workers.

Data from the Employment Service of Slovenia suggest that about 13,000 people lost their jobs during coronavirus shutdown, with the number of people currently looking for employment standing at about 90,000.

The lowest number of registered unemployed in Slovenia since 2004 was 59,303 job seekers in September 2008, and the highest 129,843 job seekers in January 2014, according to the Statistics Office database.

STA, 4 June 2020 - Slovenia has recorded no new coronavirus cases among 828 tests carried out yesterday, fresh data from the government show. Only five cases of infection remain active in the country.

Five Covid-19 patients remain in hospital, none of them requiring intensive treatment.

The total number of Sars-Cov-2 cases so far confirmed in the country remains at 1,477. The death toll remains at 109.

The country has so far conducted 81,333 tests for Sars-Cov-2.

STA, 4 June 2020 - The government has put Austria on a list of countries whose citizens are free to enter Slovenia without restrictions from midnight, a move that comes after Austria opened its borders for all neighbours bar Italy, government coronavirus spokesman Jelko Kacin announced on Thursday.

This leaves Italy as the only neighbouring country whose citizens are still subject to travel restrictions in Slovenia. Kacin said the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) is keeping a close eye on the situation and analysing when restrictions might be lifted.

Italian Foreign Minister Luigi di Maio is scheduled to pay a visit to Slovenia on Saturday and Kacin indicated it should be clear by then when the restrictions might be lifted for Italian citizens as well.

Croatia was the first to be put on the list of countries whose citizens may enter Slovenia without any restrictions, on 19 May, followed by Hungary at the end of May, both based on bilateral agreements between foreign ministries.

Such bilateral agreements are in lieu of an EU-wide agreement on the reopening of borders after the coronavirus epidemic.

According to current rules, other EU and Schengen zone citizens may enter Slovenia without restrictions only if they fall into one of 17 categories of exemptions, such as tourism, ownership of property, some kinds of business or to visit relatives, in all other cases they must submit to a 14-day quarantine.

Similar measures are in place for third-country nationals, but for them the list of exemptions is much narrower.

Kacin said Slovenia was currently in the process of analysing which countries in the region, in particular in South-East Europe, as well as more distant countries may be placed on the list. The decision will be based on analyses of the epidemiological situation in each individual country.

STA, 3 June 2020 - Slovenians will be able to cross the border without restrictions to all neighbouring countries from Thursday as Austria abolishes health checks on its border with Slovenia as the last neighbour to do so.

Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg announced on Wednesday that the country was abolishing border and health checks on all its borders, except with Italy, on Thursday.

Quoted by the Austrian press agency APA, Schallenberg said the regime on the borders with Germany, Lichtenstein, Switzerland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czechia and Hungary from tomorrow would be the same as before the coronavirus pandemic.

This means that on entering the country from those countries passengers will no longer have to quarantine or be required to present proof of not being infected with the novel virus.

Slovenia's Foreign Ministry welcomed the decision. "It's good and happy news and the success of Slovenia's diplomatic efforts", ministry spokesman Aleksander Geržina said.

Austria had reimposed border checks on the border with Slovenia, an internal EU border, during the migration crisis in 2015, a move that Slovenia has been protesting against as being unwarranted.

"Slovenia's epidemiologic picture is one of the best and this fact deserved recognition," said Geržina, who said diplomats had been working for about a month for Austria to sea the real picture.

Austria lifting health checks is important so that Slovenian citizens can start travelling freely while respecting all rules related to the Covid-19 pandemic and so that people can finally start planning their holidays as they are used to, said Geržina.

Austria was the last of Slovenia's neighbours to end health restrictions that were imposed following the coronavirus outbreak as Italy lifted border restrictions for EU citizens today.

Croatia and Hungary have lifted restrictions for Slovenian citizens earlier. These are also the only countries whose citizens can enter Slovenia completely without restrictions.

This is because Slovenia has already entered into bilateral agreements with the two countries that make such restriction-free travel possible.

Geržina expects Slovenia will soon add Austria to the list of countries from where entry is possible without restrictions. The government places countries on the list based on the recommendation from the National Institute of Public Health.

Citizens of other EU countries are allowed to enter without a mandatory 14-day quarantine if they have permanent or temporary residence in Slovenia, own property or vessel here, have booked accommodation, or fall under any of the 17 exceptions to the rule.

STA, 2 June 2020 - The Catholic Church issued new guidelines on Monday after the epidemic officially ended in Slovenia. Priests will no longer stream masses online and healthy believers may attend holy mass without face masks if the appropriate distance of 1.5 metres can be kept between them.

The distancing rule does not apply to members of the same household, while children do not have to wear masks but have to observe the same social distancing rules as in schools, the Slovenian Bishops' Conference decided.

Holy water must not be used, instead hand disinfectants must be available to believers at church entries. Churches must be thoroughly aired after every mass. Those open also outside mass hours must be regularly cleaned and aired.

Confession is only possible if appropriate protective guards are fitted in the confessional, the believer must wear a mask and disinfect their hands. Confessions via telephone or the web remain prohibited.

Funerals are allowed under the same state-issued assembly restrictions. Currently public gatherings of about 200 people in the open are allowed in Slovenia.

STA, 2 June 2020 - A primary school pupil in Maribor has tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in what is the first positive case among children after they started gradually returning to schools on 18 May, and the first confirmed case in the country's second largest city after 30 April.

The head teacher of the Ludvik Pliberšek School wrote on Tuesday the school had been notified of the infection by the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ).

The 17 classmates of the infected third-grader, who was asymptomatic, and teacher were sent into a two-week quarantine, while the remaining pupils at the school will continue going to class. The classmates' parents are allowed to continue going to work.

This decision was made after the NIJZ conducted an assessment of the situation, establishing all of its preventive measures were being implemented. The NIJZ told the STA the infected child had not had close contact with children from other classes.

Mario Fafangel of the NIJZ later told the press that this was probably a case of an infection contracted within the child's family, with other family members also infected. One case was confirmed on Monday by midnight while an infection was also confirmed today for some of the contacts.

While the detailed figures will be published on Wednesday, the tracing of contacts is continuing. The original source of the infection has not yet been identified.

The development comes after the first three grades returned to school on 18 May. Ninth-graders followed a week later and the remaining primary school children returned on Monday.

It also comes after Maribor declared itself a coronavirus-free zone last Thursday, having been without a new Covid-19 case since 30 April.

Two new coronavirus infections on Monday, no deaths reported

STA, 2 June 2020 - Two people tested positive for coronavirus in Slovenia on Monday, raising the total number of infections recorded so far to 1,475. Five people were still in hospital, the same as the day before, of whom one was in intensive care. No deaths were reported, meaning that the national death toll remained at 109.

On Monday, 659 tests were conducted, putting the total number of tests performed so far at 79,698, or roughly 39,000 tests per million population.

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Things are returning to something like normal in Slovenia, as the country emerges from the first wave of the pandemic, picks up at the start of summer and looks to the future, with the hope of good health and prosperity.

The latter will depend on people going out and doing things to get businesses up and running once more, working within the remaining restrictions to ensure the former – masks, social distancing, increased hygiene and so on.

Kinodvor, the arts cinema in Ljubljana that shows current and recent features and shorts for adults and children – and which, together the classic archive Kinoteka does so much to keep movie-going alive in the capital – reopened on Monday, 1 June.

Curious as to how the restrictions still in place will impact the experience of going to the cinema, we got in touch with Aliki Kalagasidu, the theatre’s PR, and asked a few questions.

Is there distance between the seats?

Well, moving the seats in Kinodvor’s hall isn't possible because they’re fixed to the ground. However we’re selling a limited amount of tickets so that everybody who buys a ticket will be seated at least 1.5 m apart. Families, couples, and so on can of course sit together.

Do people need to wear masks when in the cinema?

No, not with the 1.5 m rule, but in all other spaces where keeping that distance isn't possible, masks should be worn.

What other changes have you made?

We have fewer screenings per day and the amount of time between the screenings is at least an hour so the hall can be cleaned, the seat's arm rests and doorknobs disinfected. Between the last show of the present day and the first show of the next the hall is disinfected and then "sealed" so nobody can enter. The hall is also aired before and after every screening. Hand sanitizers are in place before entering the cinema and the hall. We are of course strictly following all other rules and recommendations by the health authorities.

What’s current programme?

It consists of re-runs of some spring titles, such as the documentary Maiden whose running was cut short by the lockdown. It's really an incredible story and I cannot recommend it enough.

In the next two weeks three new films are premiering, although without the usual related events. These are Little Joe by Jessica Hausner from 4 June, the Romanian The Whistlers from 8 June and the Swedish Britt-Marie Was Here from 11 June. Kinodvor will also host the Documentary Film Festival, along with Cankarjev dom, from 9 to 16 June with screenings of select documentary features. So the programme of the whole month will consist of new titles as well as some re-runs, like Judy, Parasite, 1917, Little Women. The full schedule is here.

What about for children?

There are no special children's events yet, but we have screenings of children's films, on Saturdays and Sundays, one screening per day, as part of Kinobalon.

STA, 1 June 2020 - Large hotels and spas in Slovenia have been given the green light to reopen on Monday after being closed for almost three months due to the coronavirus epidemic, however the majority remain closed. Some will start welcoming guests at the end of the week, others later on. Border reopening will be a key factor, say hotels.

After allowing accommodation facilities with up to 30 rooms to reopen on 18 May, the government has now given the go-ahead to all hotels regardless of their size, as well as spas, health and fitness centres, and swimming pools.

A number of hotel managers have pointed out though that lifting border restrictions will be a key factor for resuming services since hotels could not be filled to sufficient capacity to guarantee profit without foreign guests.

The border situation is currently uncertain and many believe that reopening in the current circumstances could only aggravate their financial situation.

Hotels in the northern Gorenjska region have not yet reopened. The Bled Sava hotels network, comprised of six hotels, will reopen only one of them this year. The renovated Hotel Park will again welcome guests on 25 June.

Meanwhile, the Triglav Hotel in Bled reopened today. The facility with 22 rooms could have done that sooner but it had opted to wait a bit. There have been some bookings for the end of this week made by Slovenian guests, said the hotel.

Hotels in Kranjska Gora, another popular destination in the north, also remain closed for now. The HIT Alpinea group, the main hotel operator there, plans to start reopening its accommodation facilities gradually, one at a time and depending on occupancy rates.

The Bohinj Eco Hotel will start welcoming guests again in late June or when the restrictions on the border with Austria are lifted.

The casino business in the western Goriška region has not yet resumed - Slovenia's leading gaming company HIT could have already reopened its casinos and hotels, but has instead decided to wait for the reopening of the Slovenian-Italian border since a vast majority of its guests (95%) come from Italy.

Hotels in the coastal town of Piran are gradually going back to normal as well - Hotel Piran will reopen in two phases, starting between 5 and 7 June and wrapping up the transition period between 11 and 14 June.

Phones were ringing off the hook this week with people showing great interest in holidaying at Piran, said the hotel, pointing out that callers were mostly asking about the current situation and border crossing options.

When it comes to spas, Terme Olimia is resuming business as usual on Friday. The Aqualuna waterpark will meanwhile reopen on 12 June.

The spa in eastern Slovenia expects quite a lot of guests mostly due to a promotional offer launched in early May.

Sava Hotels, the country's largest hotel operator, will reopen its hotels across the country gradually from the end of this week, while the campsite Kamp Lucija in Portorož opened on Saturday.

The Zdravilišče Laško spa hotel will also reopen on Friday, mostly welcoming guests seeking rehabilitation treatments, followed by reopening the swimming pool complex on 15 June and the Thermana Park on 19 June.

The latter capitalised on business and sports events in the pre-corona times, but will now have to deal with a lot of those events being cancelled. The hotel is hosting smaller, one-day events this week though, the first after the epidemic.

The Terme Ptuj in north-east also plans to reopen most of its facilities on 15 June, except for indoor swimming pools and saunas, which are to stay closed until further notice.

Hotels in Rogaška Slatina, another famous spa resort in the country, will go back to normal a bit later, starting with Grand Hotel Rogaška on 24 June.

The Terme Zreče spa, near Maribor, will see the reopening of accommodation facilities as early as Wednesday. Cafes and restaurants will be reopened gradually, while saunas will remain closed until health authorities release relevant guidelines, presumably in mid-June.

The Maribor Terme spa plans to reopen only one of its hotels for now - Mercure City Center will welcome guests again on 15 June. Visitors to Slovenia's second largest city could also spend the night at Hotel City, which reopens today.

Accommodation facilities across the country may rely on additional revenue in a form of holiday vouchers which are to be given to all Slovenian citizens. The measure, intended to boost tourism, is part of the third stimulus package, adopted on Friday, however it has not yet entered into effect.

Slovenians will be able to start spending the vouchers (worth EUR 200 for adults and EUR 50 for minors) at the facilities of their choice by 15 June at the latest, said government spokesman Jelko Kacin at today's briefing.

The vouchers could be used until the end of the year. The government is finalising relevant details.

In the wake of the Covid-19 epidemic being effectively over today, most fitness centres across Slovenia reopened as well. Individual and group workouts are allowed, with users required to heed preventive measures.

The Ljubljana GYM24 fitness centre, the only gym in the capital that is open 24/7, reopened when the clock struck midnight.

Among the first gyms to resume services were also Bodifit (BeFit) centres in Ljubljana, Maribor, Celje, Kamnik and Domžale. The centres call on their visitors to enter the facilities one by one, use hand sanitisers as well as face masks whenever they are surrounded by a greater number of people.

Showers are still off-limits so gym users are urged to bring extra clothes with them. They will also be required to sign a statement on their medical status.

Gyms have adapted to the new post-corona reality, including by setting workout equipment at least 2 metres apart from others. The Celje Top Fit gym has meanwhile amended its opening hours, introducing a break between the morning and afternoon shifts to disinfect all the equipment and air the rooms.

STA, 1 June 2020 - Slovenian frontline staff will get an unprecedented thank you for their work during the coronavirus epidemic as military planes and US fighter jets conduct a flypast of the entire country on Monday, the first day after the formal end of the epidemic.

Three Slovenian Pilatus PC-9 will be joined by for the six American F-16 fighters, taking off from Aviano air base in Italy, will join up around Jesenice in the west just after 1pm and then fly a loop over the entire country east and then back west.

15. PVL in 31. lovski polk @US_EUCOM iz @AirAviano 1. junija med 13.10 in 14.25 na preletu nad RS za zdravstveno osebje, CZ, @sos112, prostovoljce, vse v boju proti #COVID19. V imenu MO, @Slovenskavojska, @URS_ZR, @Policija in @USEmbassySLO, #AlliesPartnersFriends – iskrena hvala pic.twitter.com/IPAl1zNkiA

— MO RS (@MO_RS) June 1, 2020

The flypast will be in two echelons a mile apart at an altitude of about 1,200 metres and a speed of 425 km/h.

The commander of the Slovenian air force, Lt-Col Janez Gaube, said on Friday that the flypast was "a clear, loud and visible thank you to all the people who gave it their all in the fight against Covid-19."

Lt-Col Ben Shaha, the US military attaché to Slovenia, added that the virus may have slowed down cooperation a bit but could not defeat the alliance.

STA, 30 May 2020 - The Foreign Ministry has amended somewhat a decree on quarantine requirement for people coming to Slovenia from third countries by adding new exemptions. One of them are people with a permanent or temporary residence in Slovenia.

The decree adopted on Tuesday was amended after the ministry received numerous requests and calls regarding the obligatory quarantine.

Together with the National Institute for Public Health (NIJZ) and the Health Ministry, the Foreign Ministry again looked into the possibility of someone bringing in the virus from third countries and established that some third countries in the region have favourable epidemiologic situation at the moment, so the decree was amended on Friday.

Under the new rules, Slovenian citizens and foreigners with a permanent or temporary residence in Slovenia will not have to go into quarantine. Also exempted from the 14-day quarantine requirement are persons attending a funeral of a relative in Slovenia and those coming for a medical examination or procedure.

Those merely transiting Slovenia in a day, and those who attend kindergarten or school in Slovenia as well as those doing scientific and research work will not be quarantined either if they present a document showing that they tested negative for the virus in the last three days.

People who transport cargo from or into Slovenia from third countries, those transiting the country transporting cargo, and those who work in international transport are also on the list. So are diplomatic personal and members of the civil protection.

This means that a Slovenian citizen returning from a several-day business trip to Serbia will not have to go into quarantine, and neither will foreigners coming to Slovenia on business from EU or Schengen countries.

However, if they will want to spend a few days in the country, they will have to submit a certificate of a negative coronavirus test and give their address in Slovenia.

Citizens of third countries who want to come to Slovenia on business will not be quarantined if they present a statement by the Economy Ministry that the quarantine would cause a major social or economic damage.

The first plane to touch down at Ljubljana airport after two months and a half of severe air traffic restrictions was Air Serbia's on Friday. Half of the 24 passengers were ordered a 14-day quarantine based on the previous decree.

The Interior Ministry said the quarantine orders for those persons remain in place but if there were any changes to the situation, the Health Ministry should be notified.

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