Following a meeting held at President’s Cabinet, the President of Republic of Kosovo, Dr. Fatmir Sejdiu, and the President of Republic of Slovenia, Mr. Danilo Türk, attended the joint forum of Kosovar and Slovenian businesses, which was organized at the Grand Hotel in Prishtina.
President Sejdiu encouraged the further boost of cooperation between the two countries in every field in a keynote speech held in front of Kosovar and Slovenian businessmen.
Below you may read highlights of President’s speech:
Honorable President of Republic of Slovenia, Your Excellency Dr. Danilo Türk,
Honorable ambassadors,
Honorable ministers, members of Parliament, representatives of Republic of Slovenia’s and Kosovo’s businesses,
Dear participants,
Today it is a special day for Kosovo as we may take pride in the fact that today we are being visited by His Excellency, the President of Republic of Slovenia, Dr. Danilo Türk, and in another visit which is taking place to affirm Slovenian businesses’ commitment to and engagement in Kosovo. The two simultaneous events serve as a most direct indication of Republic of Slovenia’s and Slovenian people’s commitment and support to the people of Kosovo and Republic of Kosovo.
I had the chance and the pleasure to thank President Türk for their constant and consequent investment and the support that the Slovenian people, government and President have provided to Kosovo earlier, in what we have come to call our laborious journey toward our country’s independence, but also during the independence of our country, by playing a leading role in very difficult and sensitive processes.
I would like to distinguish a moment that I have used as a symbol or a metaphor during my conversation with President Türk. The immediate support that Turk has provided to the Republic of Kosovo was based on the ideal of human freedom; Slovenia was among the first countries that have supported us at the darkest moments that we have gone through and it was a subject of conversations that we had in our families, in my family as well, where one of our kids who had not reached the school age yet was asking: Why is Slovenia helping us?
My answer was and will be that Slovenia has essentially supported the human spirit and the most necessary for a people to live in freedom, like others. In terms of economic relations, Slovenia and Kosovar businessmen have maintained a lively communication, considering this to be a spiritual need to move forward toward new processes and, naturally, to foster good relations between our countries.
It was not a coincidence that the Republic of Slovenia was one of the first to deploy a powerful presence and to take an active part in positive developments that have taken place in Kosovo, as this has only added to the support that these people have provided even during the times when there were hesitations as to whether one should or whether it was safe to invest in Kosovo. Even in those times, they were in Kosovo and were a part of Kosovo’s growth and developments in the course of all processes.
Adding to what Kosovo and her allies have done, a great credit is well-earned by the Republic of Slovenia for its support. Therefore, we shall pave the way for new developments and economic cooperation in all possible areas, including science, culture and other fields of communication and exchange of experiences.
To us, as Kosovars, it is important to draw on Republic of Slovenia’s experience and the way it has left behind a period of transition and on elements that have distinguished and accelerated its integration into the European Union and NATO.
I shall dwell on the first and the second major elements for a while. First, it was its direct movement towards a visionary policy that set the stage for the development of best possible policies, legislation, economy and other fields that nurture the existence of a state.
A good example is also that quick way in which Republic of Slovenia has undergone the transition in terms of legislation. I know that they had to adopt around 1,000 laws and to adjust them to European standards.
It is no coincidence that they have provided a direct support to our country’s institution and that they are maintaining this support nowadays. It is good to see that business people have managed to move on faster than some other segments that had to wait for major processes to take place.
The people of the Republic of Slovenia have done this in the best way and have chosen the best way and we are grateful to them for all that they have done for us. We are living in an era of experts, of people that will deal with all areas of communication and economic know-how.
We are allies and we support major processes and we want Kosovo to remain appreciative of and to foster good relations with all the countries of the region and its neighboring countries and I believe that, owing to this approach and state policy, we shall manage to give ideas for the century in which we are living, for the millennium and for the future of humankind, by being an equal part and indivisible part of our joint processes.
This post is also available in: SQ