The Core Working Group for the EU Presidency (CWG) headed by Prime Minister Janez Janša convened for its eighth session and took various decisions necessary for smooth preparations for Slovenia's presidency of the Council of the EU in the first half of 2008.

 

FOTO: Primož Lavre/Salomon 2000

 

The agenda consisted of fourteen points, the most important being a presentation of a report on the progress of preparations for the presidency, which included detailed reports by individual sub-groups and the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Slovenia to the EU in Brussels on the work completed between April and the end of July 2006. The CWG was also briefed on the sub-groups' operational working schedule for the following three months.

 

The CWG approved the guidelines for running the presidency, and thus defined the roles and competencies of essential bodies and individuals participating in the preparations for and carrying out of the presidency. The document will be the basis for drafting more detailed manuals on managing the presidency. These will be prepared, in line with their competencies, by the Government Office for European Affairs, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) in order to devise a detailed breakdown of work and the tasks of ministries and other parties involved in coordinating European affairs before and during the presidency.

 

The CWG was also briefed on interpreting services during the presidency and approved a provisional list of informal meetings below ministerial level. Following the proposals of the competent ministries, the CWG approved new chairs of three sub-groups in accordance with their competencies. Alenka Bratušek, Director-General for the Budget at the Ministry of Finance, was appointed the new chair of the Presidency Budget Sub-group; Bogdan Benko, Acting Director-General for European Affairs and Bilateral Relations, was appointed the new chair of the Presidency Programme Sub-group; and Gregor Krajc, Director of the Government PR and Media Office, was appointed the new chair of the Public Relations and Promotion Sub-group.