News roundup - Thursday, 1 August

Slovenia hands over two Russian spies in prisoner exchange

ANKARA, Turkey/WASHINGTON, US/LJUBLJANA - Slovenia took part in the largest prisoner swap since the end of the Cold War. The country handed over two Russian spies who pleaded guilty and were convicted. Unofficially, PM Robert Golob had discussed the exchange with US President Joe Biden, the news portal 24.ur reported. Biden later thanked US allies, including Slovenia, for their support in the major prisoner exchange.

*Volk: Slovenia's role in prisoner swap affirms its trustworthiness

LJUBLJANA - A senior government official confirmed Slovenia's participation in a major East-West prisoner swap that took place today. Vojko Volk, a state secretary in the prime minister's office in charge of international affairs and national and international security, said that the role Slovenia played in the exchange reaffirmed the country's status as a trustworthy and equal partner in collective security efforts. He confirmed in a press release that Slovenia contributed two Russian citizens to the swap,

Geoplin signs first gas supply deal with Azerbaijan's SOCAR

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's largest gas supplier Geoplin concluded the first gas supply deal with the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan based on the memorandum of understanding the companies signed in July. Geoplin said the agreement was the first step towards potential long-term cooperation, but the company did not reveal any details of the deal. Happy that Slovenia was able to further diversify its gas supply, Energy Minister Bojan Kumer later told the STA: "With this we literally saved and secured Slovenia's gas supply in the coming winter."

NLB bank reports 20% higher half-year profit

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's largest banking group, NLB, generated EUR 292 million in net profit in the first half of the year, an increase of 20% year-on-year that is attributed mainly to the favourable economic situation and high interest rates. Net interest income was up by 21% to EUR 460.4 million. The growth was driven by a combination of volume and margin growth, the bank said in the semi-annual report. Net non-interest income rose by 9% year-on-year and net fee and commission income was up by 11% as a result of the positive effect of economic activity and increased activity in investment funds and bancassurance.

Public finance deficit 37% lower in first six months

LJUBLJANA - General government revenue, which involves the four main public finance accounts, reached EUR 13.4 billion in the first half of the year, up 11.2% year-on-year, and although expenditure increased by 9.5% to EUR 13.6 billion, general government deficit was 37% lower, at EUR 275 million, the Finance Ministry said on Wednesday. Tax revenue rose by 13.8% to almost EUR 6.1 billion. National budget deficit amounted to EUR 346 million, which is largely attributed to reconstruction costs stemming from the 2023 floods.

Fiscal Council says unrealistic budget planning serious issue in 2020-2023

LJUBLJANA - The Fiscal Council issued a critical report of public finance planning by governments in the 2020-2023 period. A key finding, addressing discrepancies unrelated to the shocks experienced in this period, notes the trend of excessive projections of expenditure, which increase the risks of inefficient spending of the excess funds. Summing up the results of its analysis, it says that the discrepancies in macroeconomic and public finance forecasts between 2020 and 2023 were mostly greater because of the wider shocks, but it adds that they also got worse when factoring in the emergency measures.

Slovenians urged to leave Lebanon, advised against travel to Israel, Iran

LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian Foreign Ministry called on Slovenian citizens in Lebanon to leave the country due to the serious security situation. It also advised against all travel to Israel, and called on Slovenian citizens who are there to leave the country as soon as possible or to act with the greatest degree of caution. They were also advised against all travel to Iran due to dangerous incidents and the risk of a sudden escalation of political tensions in the region.

Slovenia condemns anti-Slovenian vandalism incident on Monte Matajur

TRIESTE, Italy/LJUBLJANA - The Foreign Ministry condemned a recent incident involving vandalised Slovenian inscriptions on a bilingual sign post on the Italian side of Mt Matajur. The mountain, which is located on the border between Slovenia and Italy, holds a special significance for members of the Slovenian minority there. The disgraceful incident shows a lack of respect for linguistic and cultural diversity in the area, the ministry said. The incident was also condemned by the Slovenian Union, a political party representing the Slovenian minority in Italy.

Slovenia to request delay in banning dental amalgam

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia will request a delay in banning dental amalgam, the use and export of which will be prohibited in the EU from 2025 as part of measures to make the EU mercury free, the Health Ministry told the newspaper Dnevnik. The public healthcare insurer ZZZS expects that mandatory health insurance rules will change in a way that white fillings will be covered by insurance for individuals under the age of 26 by the start of January 2025 and for the rest by July 2026 at the latest.

Slovenia deploying another chopper to help fight N Macedonia fires

LJUBLJANA - A Slovenian Armed Forces helicopter with a crew will be deployed to North Macedonia today to help fight wildfires, in line with a decision taken by the government last night. Slovenia sent two crewed helicopters to the country in mid-July to assist in the firefighting effort. Slovenia is responding to North Macedonia's request for assistance through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism with a Cougar helicopter, the Defence Ministry said in a press release.

Concrete dump kills hundreds of fish in stream near Maribor

RUŠE - Between 1,500 and 2,000 fish are believed to have been killed in the Lobnica creek in Smolnik near Maribor last weekend as an unknown perpetrator dumped up to 0.75 m3 of fresh concrete and cement water into the creek 500 metres upstream the place where it flows into the Drava River. Cement water contains chemicals harmful to gills and killed basically the entire aquatic fauna. It has been assessed that it will take two to three years for the creek to fully recover, Večer reported yesterday.

Experimental undersea structure attracts first organisms

PIRAN - An undersea structure installed a kilometre off the Slovenian coast in March as part of a project to develop an innovative way of farming indigenous marine organisms and monitor marine biodiversity has attracted first residents. It has been settled by polychaetes and bryozoa, and sea snail eggs have also been observed. The structure was installed by the YouSea non-profit organisation, which would like to see oyster larvae eventually settle the structure.

Austrian installation fusing art and science on display in Slovenia

LJUBLJANA/CELJE - A multimedia installation combining the power of art and science is currently on show in Ljubljana's DLUL Gallery after appearing in many cities or venues, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The installation Atmospheres - Art, Climate, and Space Research is part of the Austrian exhibition Steiermark Schau 2023. It combines video art, experimental film, modern composition and science. On 21 August it will move to Celje's Tehnopark.

Bravo fail to qualify for UEFA Conference League

LJUBLJANA - The Ljubljana football club Bravo, the fourth-placed team in the last season of the Slovenian premier league, lost 1:3 to Bosnia-Herzegovina's Zrinjski Mostar in the return match in the second round of the UEFA Conference League qualifiers, ending their run in the qualifying phase despite winning the first match 1:0. This was their first attempt to make it to the European football scene.