ZAGREB, 27 April 2022 - In his first media interview after winning Slovenia's parliamentary election on Sunday, prime minister-elect Robert Golob said on Wednesday that the new government will strive to develop good neighbourly relations with everyone including Croatia.
In the interview with RTV Slovenia televised late on Tuesday night, Golob said that there is no need for any uneasiness following the election with regard to outstanding issues with Croatia. He reiterated that the arbitration agreement is certainly "an anchor" from which not one Slovenian government "can back out of and we too do not have that intention."
"I do not think there is any reason for uneasiness. Naturally, we will try to foster good neighbourly relations with everyone, including Croatia. However, our policy will be a little more involved in seeking a consensus and less on solo opinions of any individual," said Golob who accused outgoing prime minister Janez Janša of going it alone with regard to the EU's common foreign policy and on the international front.
Golob said that he expects the new government to start working in June and as he said, the new government will include a wide circle of experts regardless of their party affiliation.
With regard to removing the wire fence on the border with Croatia, Golob said that the first thing to do is to form a government "because the wire fence was erected by a government decision and it will be up to the government to remove it."
"I am counting on the possibility of removing it during the summer, however, some procedures take longer than we would like. In any case, I'm an optimist and believe that that will be one of the first concrete steps we will face during the summer," said Golob.
With regard to the national plan, his government intends to embark on preparing measures and reforms needed to deal with the energy crisis that could emerge in the autumn and also to prepare measures related to healthcare in case of a new wave of the COVID pandemic.
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