Minister Samuel Žbogar Ljubljana, March 11 - Foreign Minister Samuel Žbogar participated at a business conference organized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS), the Economy Ministry and the Foreign Ministry.

Cooperation among all these agencies is crucial for providing support to Slovenian companies abroad, the participants at the conference agreed. The role of economic diplomacy must be enhanced, Foreign Minister Samuel Žbogar said.

Economic diplomacy should be given more attention in Slovenia despite the process of European integration, the minister said. It is an area where member states will keep their jurisdiction, while classical foreign affairs will increasingly fall under the jurisdiction of the EU, he added.

Slovenian diplomacy can help the economy in times of crisis. This is also the best opportunity for it to prove itself useful to business, Žbogar stressed.

The Foreign Ministry will therefore again begin to put additional focus on economic diplomacy. The Directorate for Economic Diplomacy and Development Cooperation at the ministry will start its work as early as this month, he said.

Žbogar also announced that talks with the Economy Ministry on the transfer of the area of business diplomacy to the Foreign Ministry are in their final stages. So far the functioning of Slovenian business diplomacy has been fragmented and inefficient, the minister said, adding that reorganization could make it more efficient and effective.

The minister said that this would enable a single set of operating standards to be introduced. The plan is to establish business divisions at Slovenian embassies. The network of economic attaches at diplomatic representations will also be expanded, he added.

The Foreign Ministry also intends to examine the possibility of closing some of the embassies and opening new ones in countries where Slovenia has greater economic interests, such as Albania, Žbogar explained.

Some 15 diplomats from Western Europe will be moved to the east, where Slovenia has greater economic interests, he added. Another measure that the ministry is planning is to boost ties with businesses by establishing closer contacts with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other similar organization.

GZS director general Samo Hribar Milic pointed out that Slovenian businesses are still not well informed on how they can get information on foreign markets from Slovenian diplomatic channels.

Both Hribar Milic and Metka Jerina of the Economy Ministry stressed that one of the priorities of Slovenian business should be to find opportunities on fast-growing market. This is where economic diplomacy can prove itself useful.

Jerina said that the Economy Ministry was planning to help fund Slovenian business delegations and Slovenian business clubs and fairs abroad. It also plans to upgrade the website of the Public Agency for Entrepreneurship and Foreign Investments (JAPTI), Jerina said.

State Department International Religious Freedom Report 2009 - Slovenia

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and other laws and policies contributed to the generally free practice of religion. The Government generally respected religious freedom in practice. There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom by the Government during the reporting period.

Foreign Ministry to Enhance Economic Diplomacy

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