Slovenian EU Presidency – ‘the last thing the EU needs is more division on fundamental values’

As Slovenia takes over the Presidency of the Council of the EU for the next six months, EFA President Jordi Solé MEP said that ‘the last thing the EU needs is more division on fundamental values’.

Slovenia holds the EU Presidency for the second half of 2021 and MEPs in Strasbourg have been debating the Slovenian presidency’s priorities with Prime Minister Janez Janša.

Whilst the presidency is likely to concentrate on the EU’s plans to support social and economic recovery after the pandemic, many MEPs raised concerns about the rhetoric deployed by Slovenia’s Prime Minister over recent months.

Speaking in the debate, Jordi Solé said:

“First of all congratulations for thirty years of Slovenia’s independence, but while we celebrate that can I remind you that there are other countries in Europe who still demand their right to self-determination.

“As regards Slovenia’s EU Presidency over the coming months, the EU will have important challenges ahead.

“In these crucial moments for the recovery of our economies and societies, and for building a more resilient and cohesive Union, the last thing the EU needs is more division on fundamental values, entertaining conspiracy theories, siding with those who put at stake the very values on which our Union is based - and which are by no means “imaginary”.

“We cannot and will not accept either double standards or relativism when it comes to fundamental rights.”