Slovenian EU Presidency
Slovenia’s EU Presidency
From “A” Student to Class President
21.12.2007
The final preparations are underway. Gleaming new conference facilities are awaiting guests from across Europe. A new website has been launched to great fanfare. Media outlets are anticipating high-profile political visits, possibly even by George W. Bush. Thousands of administrators are completing final preparations for what will be one of the most demanding projects in Slovenia’s history. The country, commonly seen as the EU’s “A” student, is just days away from presiding over the 490-million strong organization – the first “new”, post-communist EU member to do so.
One of the most high profile events in the weeks leading up to Slovenia’s EU presidency was the December 1 opening of the Brdo Congress Centre, the main venue of presidency-related events. The high-tech facility, which cost EUR 15 million to construct, will host as many as 130 events during the six-month presidency. Even though several international conferences and meetings have taken place at Brdo pri Kranju in recent years, the exceptional demands of the presidency called for more meeting space. And the Brdo Congress Centre certainly has plenty of space; it includes a hall for 550 people and a multi-purpose conference room for 200 people. The construction of congress centre went over budget; still, the government insists that the costs -- EUR 1,600 per square metre – were well within reason.
The government expects that the total costs of the presidency will be approximately EUR 62 million, higher than originally forecast. However, officials insist that the costs are nevertheless reasonable, especially since Slovenia will benefit from its increased profile in Europe.
The Final Countdown
Slovenia’s tourism industry in particular is placing high hopes on the presidency, both from visits directly connected with official events and from the related publicity. On Ljubljana’s Slovenska cesta (Slovenian Street) alone, 14 buildings have recently undergone restoration. According to the city’s deputy mayor Aleš Čerin, EUR 300,000 of Ljubljana’s budget has been set aside for the needs of the presidency.
Included in these costs are Slovenia’s efforts to promote its presidency in other EU member states. In a high-profile event in Brussels, which featured Slovenia pop-singer Neisha, Slovenia unveiled the logo of the presidency in early December. A day later, it launched the official site of the presidency, www.eu2008.si. Slovenia will also organize a number of events throughout the EU designed to showcase the country and the presidency.
Two meetings of the European Council are scheduled during Slovenia’s presidency, as are as a series of informal ministerial meetings throughout the six-month period. Various high-level visits from non-EU countries will also take place, even though firm details are not yet available.
George W. Bush is expected to be one such high-profile visitor to Brdo pri Kranju. In early October, the daily Žurnal24 broke the news that Bush is likely to visit Slovenia for the biannual EU-US summit, traditionally organized by presiding countries. Even though Slovenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged the plans, official confirmation will not come until the date of Bush’s arrival draws nearer, partly because of security reasons. The US Embassy in Ljubljana has sated that a visit by George W. Bush is possible, but has not issued any further statements. According to the first reports in Žurnal24, the visit was originally scheduled for March; however, the newspaper later reported that June is a more likely month for the visit. Other top-level US officials, including Secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, will almost certainly visit Slovenia during the presidency.
Getting Down to Business
One of the top priorities for Slovenia during its six-month presidency is the EU-wide ratification process of the Lisbon Treaty. During the coming year, each of the 27 EU members is due to ratify the treaty, which is scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2009. Slovenia has announced a partnership with France, the next in line to take over the EU presidency, to ensure a smooth ratification process. Since Slovenia also wants to set an example for other EU members, its parliament may ratify it as early as January. Ironically, one of the key elements of the Lisbon Treaty is the elimination of rotating EU presidencies.
Another policy programme named after Portugal’s capital will be at the centre of attention during this period: the Lisbon Strategy, a plan for growth and job-creation. Slovenia expects to draft a new blueprint of this strategy for the 2008-2010 period.
The Role Model
Slovenia’s image as a EU “A” student - and its status as the only ex-Yugoslav country to have joined the European Union – is expected to play an important role in negotiations over the future status of Kosovo. According to the Economist, ““On its own, Slovenia is not going to resolve the Kosovo crisis. But the symbolism of its presidency is important, and well-timed. The visible asymmetry of Slovenia’s success is a powerful rebuke to Serb and Kosovar positions entrenched round nationalism and ethnic isolation.” Slovenia also understands Serbia and its politics better than most other EU countries, or, as one European diplomat put it more bluntly, the Slovenes “know when the bullshitting has started”. Still, the enthusiasm over Slovenia’s presidency at the height of tensions over Kosovo isn’t universal. A European official told the Economist that Slovenia may be chairing EU meetings next year, but it is hardly going to be its president who “convinces Putin” to change his mind about Kosovo.
In mid-December, Prime Minister Janez Janša denied reports that Slovenia has already drafted a special plan for Kosovo. He insisted that Slovenia has simply started an effort to build a EU consensus regarding the province.
Slovenia’s familiarity with the Western Balkans will also play an important role as countries of the region begin or continue their accession talks with the EU. Serbia’s optimism was recently boosted when Slovenia’s Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel indicated that the country should not face any additional conditions for entry and that it could start the negotiation process even while some of its Hague War Crimes Tribunal suspects remain at large. Prime Minister Janša has also stated that he sees Serbia obtaining an official EU candidate status next year.
Croatia, the country that has made the most progress in its bid to join the EU, is expected to close several negotiation chapters during Slovenia’s presidency and is counting on support from its neighbour to the north. Nevertheless, some outstanding issues remain, chief among them being Croatia’s plans to expand the enforcement of its Exclusive Ecological and Fisheries Zone to EU on January 1. Both Slovenia and Croatia strongly oppose this move, and the European Commission has criticized Croatia for breaching an earlier agreement on this issue and not making enough progress to negotiate a permanent solution with its neighbours. Nevertheless, Slovenian MEP Lojze Peterle says he is confident that Croatia “will sooner or later discover that Slovenia is its best advocate in the EU and that it pays to have good relations with it.”
Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia are also expecting Slovenia’s assistance, but both countries’ accession bids have recently slowed amidst criticism of insufficient reforms. Newly independent Montenegro is hoping that Slovenia’s presidency will give its EU hopes a boost. According to Branko Perović, Montenegro’s ambassador to Slovenia, “Montenegro bases its expectation in particular on the fact that the Western Balkans is one of Slovenia’s priorities and that it understands the importance of EU expansion to this region better than others.”
Routine Matters
Not all of Slovenia’s work during the presidency will relate to high-profile projects. Much of it will consist of coordinating various issued between EU member states and other routine tasks. Some other projects include Slovenia’s plan to coordinate the EU’s telecomm reform package and reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy.
Slovenian MEP Miha Brejc suggests that France may be trying to steal some of Slovenia’s limelight: “The French are drafting a presidency programme for the next trio, as part of which there have been demands to debate certain issues later, under the French presidency despite it being part of our presidency period.” He points out that the “French have a hyperactive president and foreign minister, and I find it difficult to imagine that they would not want to leave an important mark during this period.”
Even for Europe’s largest countries, the EU presidency is a big deal. For Slovenia, it’s one of its biggest tests yet.