December 13, 2007. Copyright 2007, Graphic News. All rights reserved

Slovenia prepares for its turn at the EU helm
By Joanna Griffin

LONDON, December 13, Graphic News: As Slovenia prepares to take over the rotating presidency of the EU, Prime Minister Janez Jansa must be hoping that its moment in the limelight is not overshadowed by either recent domestic difficulties or rumblings elsewhere in the Balkans. The EU presidency comes shortly after his government survived a vote of confidence.
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ÒThis is a confidence vote not for the [ruling] coalition but for SloveniaÕs unity in holding the presidency of the European UnionÓ, Jansa said of the vote, which he called following the shock defeat of his centre right coalitionÕs candidate Lojze Peterle by the centre-left candidate Danilo Turk in autumn presidential elections.
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For now, at least, Slovenia is back on course to bask in its six-month turn at the EU helm, a role rich in significance for the tiny Alpine nation: it is the first country admitted to the Union during the 21st century to hold the reins, and the smallest (barring Luxembourg). Slovenia takes over the 18-month joint working plan devised with Germany and Portugal.
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But the timing is crucial for another reason. The wind may have gone out of the sails of the enlargement project lately, but several Balkan nations, including Croatia and Serbia, are still eager to join. Membership of the latter may depend on its willingness to do a deal with Kosovo Albanians growing increasingly restive in their demands for independence. Prime Minister Jansa has already signalled that the EU will take the lead on this.
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Another priority is the EU constitution, which regional leaders are trying to revive. If SloveniaÕs presidency were to make significant progress on this, it might improve the standing of a leader who now seems at odds with the mood of his country. Until recently Slovenia, formerly part of communist Yugoslavia, was hailed for its painless transition to democracy and the free market economy -- JansaÕs own path has not been so smooth.
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Born in Ljubljana in 1958, Jansa was a prominent member of the Communist Party during his youth, and later graduated in defence studies. After writing dissident articles in the independent magazine Mladina, he was arrested and charged with betraying military secrets and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, but was released after serving six. He later served as defence minister for a period during the 1990s.
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In October 2004 his Slovenian Democratic Party swept to power in polls that nearly doubled its vote. Jansa, who had campaigned on a pledge to introduce the euro and simplify taxes, forged an uneasy deal with the rightwing New Slovenia and the PeopleÕs Party and centre-left Democratic Party of Pensioners. He set about privatising state industries and increasing competitiveness ahead of LjubljanaÕs switch to the euro in January 2007.
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Since then, however, high inflation and rising prices have dented the popularity of his government. These days Slovenia is more often cited as an example of where things can go wrong in the run-up to entrance into the eurozone. For Jansa, the confidence vote has sounded alarm bells ahead of general elections at the end of next year.
/ENDS