Weekly review of events involving Slovenia, 25-31 October

FRIDAY, 25 October

MARIBOR - Following confirmation of a severe cyberattack on the University of Maribor, it was reported that ransomware is involved. The extensive breach has likely encrypted all data, including backups. Delo reported that the scale of the breach exceeds that of the recent cyberattack on the state-owned power group HSE, which was resolved within days.

LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Robert Golob said that Slovenia is well prepared for a possible economic crisis as the government has been making sure that systematic investments are made in innovation and diversification of risks, as he took questions from MPs. He stressed that the number of announced new jobs in industry exceeds the announced lay-offs.

LJUBLJANA - Environment, Climate, and Energy Minister Bojan Kumer dismissed speculation that Prime Minister Robert Golob could lose confidence in him amid controversy around the cancelled referendum on the Krško 2 nuclear project. He also assured the press that his ministry is committed to providing comprehensive information and downplayed the delay in the release of a relevant study.

LJUBLJANA - Responding to a survey showing about one in six doctors intends to leave the public system if forthcoming legislation bans dual practice as currently planned, the Health Ministry said it does not believe doctors will leave in such great numbers. Such warnings stem out of a fear of change, Jasna Humar, director general of the Health Ministry's Directorate General for Healthcare, told the STA.

LJUBLJANA - Former Agriculture Minister Jože Podgoršek was elected president of the Chamber of Agriculture and Forestry. He will take over on 2 November from Roman Žveglič, who did not run for a second term. Podgoršek chairs the forum for agriculture and rural areas, a wing of the opposition Democrats (SDS).
        
SATURDAY, 26 October

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia can do a lot for EU enlargement, Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon told the newspaper Večer in an interview. "We've always advocated an open door policy for countries that are prepared. This time has not come yet, and there is no consensus within the alliance either. But the door is open," she said.

SUNDAY, 27 October

PORTOROŽ - The 27th Slovenian Film Festival concluded in Portorož in the evening with its awards ceremony, where Sonja Prosenc's Family Therapy (Odrešitev za začetnike) emerged as the big winner, taking home seven Vesna awards, including for best feature film. In My Dreams a Tree Grows Every Night (V mojih sanjah rase vsako noč drevo) was declared the best documentary, and the FIPRESCI Award went to Cent'anni.

MONDAY, 28 October

LJUBLJANA - The Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) found in its most recent report on Slovenia that the country has made insufficient progress in implementing anti-corruption recommendations since 2018. "Tangible actions are required on an integrity plan for the government, managing conflicts of interests and carrying out substantive checks of asset declarations," the report says.

NEW YORK, US - Slovenia expressed support for the work of the International Criminal Court (ICC) during a UN General Assembly meeting. Foreign Ministry official Marko Rakovec welcomed the increase in the number of ICC cases, saying this meant justice for the victims was on its way and was a testament to the court's role as a leading authority in the global fight against crime.

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia is concerned about irregularities in the general elections in Georgia, which have been detected by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Foreign Ministry said. It expects the Georgian authorities to seriously address the irregularities in order to restore confidence in the electoral process.

LJUBLJANA - Representatives of NGOs Greenpeace Slovenia, Umanotera, and the Legal Centre for Human Rights and Environmental Protection called for the abolition of the post of the state secretary. They believe this is the key prerequisite for a broader and inclusive discussion on Slovenia's energy future.

LJUBLJANA - The government decided on a collaboration with Italian supercomputer centre Cineca HPC as part of which Slovenia will commit to contributing EUR 5 million for the purchase of a new supercomputer. In turn, Slovenia will have access to the capabilities of the supercomputer in proportion to the funds invested.

LJUBLJANA - Finance Minister Klemen Boštjančič and two associations representing 195 of the country's 212 municipalities signed an agreement raising the per capita state funding for municipalities by 6.3% to EUR 771.33 in 2025 compared to this year. An additional EUR 48 million will be secured to help the most underfunded municipalities.

LJUBLJANA - This year's Jenko Prize, the country's top accolade for poetry, went to Miljana Cunta and Robert Simonišek. Cunta, 48, was honoured for her collection of poems titled Nekajkrat Smo Zašli, Zdaj Se Vračamo (We Lost Our Way a Few Times, Now We're Going Back), while Simonišek, 47, received the prize for Vračanje k Čistosti (Returning to Purity).

TUESDAY, 29 October

LJUBLJANA - Slovenian officials expressed deep concern over the Israeli parliament's vote to ban the UN relief and works agency UNRWA from Israel. This is a massive blow to international law and the UN Charter, Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon said. President Nataša Pirc Musar said she was "appalled by the Israeli Parliament vote to ban the operation of UNRWA in the occupied Palestinian territory".

BRDO PRI KRANJU - Slovenia hosted the 8th session of the Coordinating Committee of Ministers of Slovenia and Italy, co-chaired by foreign ministers Tanja Fajon and Antonio Tajani. Tajani and Fajon said that their countries continued to strengthen what are already good relations, as well as cooperation in a number of fields.

WEDNESDAY, 30 October

LJUBLJANA - Consumer prices remained unchanged on average in October on an annual basis, after the annual inflation rate stood at 6.9% last October. A deflation of 0.5% was meanwhile recorded on a monthly basis, mainly due to cheaper electricity and holiday packages, the Statistics Office reported.

LJUBLJANA - President Nataša Pirc Musar and Prime Minister Robert Golob expressed solidarity with Spain after the country had been hit by devastating floods which killed dozens of people. Conveying condolences to the families of victims, the government expressed readiness to help.

LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian baking group Don Don, which is present across large parts of the Balkans, announced it will become a part of the Mexican Bimbo group, the largest baker in the world. Don Don will lead Bimbo's development and sales programme in central and southern Europe, where Bimbo has not been present so far.
        
THURSDAY, 31 October

BRUSSELS, Belgium - Marta Kos, the commissioner-designate for enlargement, held a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen ahead of commissioner hearings in the European Parliament. The talks focused on "support for Ukraine and the importance of the enlargement process as an undoubted priority of the entire Commission," Kos said.

ZAGREB - The new MP representing several ethnic minorities in the Croatian parliament, including Slovenians, promised in an interview for the STA that his approach to all minorities will be exactly the same. He said that tangible and good cooperation to the satisfaction of the Slovenian minority could be established in the future.