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Prime Minister Pahor attends European Council Meeting in Brussels

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, today attended the EU Council session, where the leaders in attendance agreed on the Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union. In his statement to the press, Mr Pahor said that the agreement reached on the treaty shows that Europe is increasingly moving faster, which is a sign that Slovenia must not to hesitate when it comes to taking action. He also called attention to the need for Slovenia to have its new government in place without further delay. "Yesterday would already be very late," Mr Pahor explained.

 

Mr Pahor later pointed out that the fiscal treaty agreed represents "an irreversible step made by the eurozone towards fiscal union". The speed at which the decision was taken on the new treaty may be surprising for many but the crisis compelled Europe to move quickly. "Europe is moving along rapidly and we should not procrastinate over these changes if we wish to take an active part in them," stressed the Prime Minister, who added that "we are looking forward to this treaty". The document implies great responsibility, but also offers the instruments necessary to overcome the crisis on the basis of a common fiscal policy which, in the long term, will contribute not only to the creation of a sustainable public budget but, in particular, to growth and the employment of the young people. On this occasion, Prime Minister Pahor emphasised that Slovenia's active youth employment policy was mentioned as a reference; this, however, does not mean that youth unemployment in Slovenia is not without its challenges, but its figures are far below the EU average.

 

When asked about the main concerns held by Slovenia's European partners regarding developments in the country, Prime Minister Pahor replied that Slovenia has many good friends in Brussels and among its European partners, all of whom are imploring Slovenia to hurry up and avoid lagging behind developments. In this regard, he pointed out that this year would be a "turning point in European politics" and warned of a growing political tension within the Union which, at present, is still properly controlled. "If political tensions should ever escalate, either within or between the EU's member states, and the decisions made to quell this discord fail, it would be a heavy blow for the European idea, as well as for Slovenia's future," the Prime Minister observed. The fact that Slovenia is in a position where it can propose compromise solutions instead of just being obliged to accept them is a "great privilege". "May this privilege not become a setback in the years to come as a result of our inactivity," beseeched the Slovenian Prime Minister, who is used to seeing "things from the Slovenian perspective in a relatively optimistic way. We have that opportunity. It depends on us as to whether or not we take advantage of it. This is not just a matter for the new Government, but for all who work in politics," Mr Pahor pointed out.

 

When asked whether he expected an easy confirmation of the decisions reached on the fiscal treaty and the amendments to the permanent mechanism for the stability of the euro in Slovenia, Prime Minister Pahor reiterated the relevance of the recent agreement reached at the Slovenian political summit in Vila Podrožnik. This agreement means that Slovenian politics has found the answer to the question as to how the solutions to the emerging key strategic issues should be coordinated. "This is what we need – an instrument that will show how national consensus on strategic matters should be formulated," said Mr Pahor adding that "too little has been said about it. This is a huge step for Slovenia. At present, we still have not shown sufficient appreciation, but this instrument will be very useful going forward", the Slovenian Prime Minister concluded.