Delo says aid from EU might lead to rebirth of Slovenia
Ljubljana, 10 August - The newspaper Delo says in its commentary on Thursday that the cabinet has its work cut out in order for Slovenia to be able to access millions of EU funds to help rebuild after the devastating floods. "The hand and the funds offered by the Commission can make possible a rebirth of Slovenia in the EU."
Last summer, as Slovenia was battling the largest wildfires in its recorded history, there was much tension between Prime Minister Robert Golob and Janez Lenarčič, the European commissioner from Slovenia, responsible for crisis management.
The commissioner was accused of not being involved enough and not advocating for Slovenia's interests in the EU. But this summer, as the country has faced what has been termed "thousand-year floods", the relationship between the government and the Commission is much better.
Already on Saturday, Lenarčič attended the government's crisis meeting and communication was established between Slovenia and the EU even before the extent of the damage was known. With the damage going into billions of euros, it is clear that EU's solidarity will play a key role in the rebuild.
Visits to Slovenia by European Commission presidents are a routine affair, but the one paid by Ursula von der Leyen yesterday was nothing of the sort. She came with concrete numbers and clear game rules, Delo says under the headline From Floods to Rebirth.
The paper believes that the "helping hand offered by the Commission" and the funds might lead to a rebirth of Slovenia in the EU.