Weekly Review of Events Involving Slovenia from 28 Jan to 3 Feb

Ljubljana, 4 February - President Janez Drnovsek was grabbing all the headlines this week. First he shocked the public by announcing on Monday that he was quitting the opposition Liberal Democracy (LDS), a party he led for over 10 years until 2002. His second bombshell came only days later, when he announced he was granting a pardon to Danilo Kovacic, the former chairman of gaming chain Hit, who had been found guilty of a massive embezzlement ring. And on Thursday, he announced had drafted a peace plan for the western Sudanese region of Darfur. In other news, Slovenia was told this week by European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Joaquin Almunia that it was on track to join the eurozone as of 1 January 2007.