Cerar: The Slovenian government is open to dialogue when it makes sense

Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar, host of today’s summit of the Southeast European Cooperation Process (SEECP), which also includes Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, reflected in a statement to reporters on relations with Croatia, stating that his government will continue with the ongoing legal processes regarding the dispute over arbitration and Croatian depositors in the former Ljubljanska banka, but that it is “open to dialogue when it makes sense.”

“Slovenia is always open to dialogue when it is possible and when it makes sense, and this will continue, but we will not yield when it comes to our legal interests,” said Cerar at a press conference during a break in the summit and before the ceremonial lunch prepared for the participants of the meeting.

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According to Cerar, Slovenia was “forced” to take legal action because Croatia “did not respond” to its earlier warnings, so these proceedings, as he announced, will continue unless Croatia agrees to implement arbitration in the meantime and changes its stance on lawsuits against Ljubljanska banka regarding the so-called transferred savings before Croatian courts.

In response to a journalist’s question about why there was no bilateral meeting with Croatian Prime Minister Plenković, in a situation where there are open issues between the countries such as arbitration and the foreign currency savings of Croatian citizens in Ljubljanska banka, Cerar said that he exchanged a few words with Plenković, but that there was no opportunity for a more thorough discussion on problematic issues.

He suggested that this should not be discussed further while the proceedings initiated by Slovenia regarding the open issues are ongoing, assessing that their resolution has reached a “dead end” due to differences and Croatia’s stance on arbitration.

The Slovenian Prime Minister reiterated his government’s well-known positions that Croatia, by refusing to implement the arbitration ruling, is violating international law, which is why Slovenia has turned to the European Commission and announced a possible lawsuit to the EU court in Luxembourg, and he called the rulings of Croatian courts against Ljubljanska banka “unlawful” because, according to Ljubljana’s stance, they should have been suspended according to the memorandum of the two governments signed in Mokrice, Slovenia, before Croatia’s entry into the EU.

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When asked why his government requested the European Commission’s mediation on Monday in the disputed issue of lawsuits against Ljubljanska banka, even though this issue has been current for years and whether this is related to the upcoming parliamentary elections in Slovenia, the Slovenian Prime Minister said that his government only sent the request for mediation to the Commission now because it coincided with new rulings against Ljubljanska banka, even though Slovenia informed them back in 2015 that these processes should be suspended.

Speaking about the content of today’s discussion at the summit, Cerar said that Slovenia supports the EU enlargement process to the Western Balkan countries and provides them with assistance in this process, and he also warns other EU members about the need to expand to these countries, advocating for the inclusion of countries from the region that wish to join NATO, as he sees this as a process of ensuring regional stability.

Cerar stated that he expressed satisfaction at the meeting with the European Commission’s decision to start negotiations with Macedonia and Albania and that he hopes the issue of Macedonia’s name in the Macedonian-Greek dispute will soon be resolved, which would allow Macedonia to join NATO.

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He said that the meeting also discussed the issue of migration and how Slovenia believes that coordination among the countries through which migrant routes pass and with the countries that are the final destination for migrants is still necessary, in order to prevent illegal border crossings.

The summit also addressed the digital economy and the issue of young people, emphasizing the need to ensure that they do not emigrate and have a secure future in their homeland, said the Slovenian Prime Minister.

The summit at Brdo near Kranj concludes in the afternoon, when, as announced, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković will also give a statement.