PRESIDENT KUCAN AND AUSTRIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ON INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

Ljubljana, 30 April 2001

The Slovenian President, Milan Kucan, received Dr Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the Republic of Austria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, for talks during her working visit to Slovenia. President Kucan began by remarking that the signing of the Agreement between the Governments of the Republic of Austria and the Republic of Slovenia on Culture, Education and Science was a good reason for the foreign minister to visit Slovenia and an important step for the future building of bilateral relations. Minister Waldner said, in regard to the agreement, that it was not only a good reason but also a positive indicator of their bilateral relations. She also expressed her personal satisfaction at the finalisation of the agreement.

President Kucan went on to mention the agreement between Slovenia and Austria that history should become a topic for historians not politicians, which can start with the work of a Slovene-Austrian group of historians and lawyers. He said that the beginning of this work would be interesting as the two sides have assessed different parts of history differently, at least politically speaking. The President stressed that Slovenia, in the past and today, would like to see Austria as a good neighbour. “Austria has acted as a good neighbour since the founding of the independent Slovene state. For historical and other reasons Vienna was better placed than other capitals to understand events in Slovenia during the period of gaining independence.”

With regard to Austrian initiatives on strategic partnerships Kucan said, “that regional cooperation and subsidiary decision-making at a regional level will become very important as regions are even longer lasting than states. It is difficult to actually define what Central Europe is,” and for this very reason the President felt it is important to encourage this kind of cooperation. Different states have different strategic interests and those interests are not always set in stone. President Kucan gave four reasons why Slovenia and Austria should cooperate. “The first reason is the normalisation or pacification of the Balkan region. Austria remains close to this region and noone may sleep soundly until conditions in the Balkans have been resolved. Slovenia is closer to the Balkans and can find solutions more easily as there is a great deal of historical ignorance about the Balkans in the world at large. Concepts that may serve well in other parts of the world are not valid in that region. The second reason is security interests in relation to which two elements should be mentioned: the Schengen border and the defence security strategy. The difference between Slovenia and Austria lies in the fact that Slovenia sees its future with the framework of Nato, while Austria has yet to set out its long-term vision regarding inclusion in Nato. The third reason is the enlargement of the European Union. Of primary importance in the EU is a commitment to shared values. Europe does not have any real alternatives to this outlook. Despite the forthcoming enlargement of the EU there will remain many countries for whom the EU will remain a desired objective rather than a reality. It would be beneficial to share experiences with countries that today are still a long way off attaining the standards Slovenia has reached. The fourth reason for cooperating in a strategic partnership is the opportunity to develop new ideas which do lack a really strong source in Europe.” According to President Kucan there exists too much pragmatism in European politics. “We cannot answer the problems of humanity with pragmatism,” said the President.

In reference to the agreement on culture President Kucan went on to express his agreement that “it is an important agreement as it encompasses cultural cooperation in the widest possible sense. A particularly sensitive part of the agreement, deserving of careful attention is the question of minorities, which are a historical reality on the European scene. All countries have problems with minorities, who politicians claim should act as a bridge between nations, but who often in practice are an obstructive element.” President Kucan took this opportunity to say that he took great interest in the status of the South Tyrolese community in Italy and Austria’s role in their protection. He said, “solutions to minority issues cannot be automatically transferred elsewhere as each minority is a specific historical phenomenon, but good examples are very instructive. Thus the situation of the Italian and Hungarian minorities in Slovenia cannot be used for other minorities. Slovenia has never built its policy towards minorities on the principles of reciprocity or in relation to numbers. National legislation has to reflect European principles which ensures that minorities can function as a bridge rather than as a obstacle.”

President Kucan went on to say that Slovenia had requested the express mention of the Vienna Treaty in the cultural agreement. He said that Article 7 of the Vienna Treaty is a permanent commitment which should have no limits in time. The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Austria replied to this and found discrepancies between the Vienna Treaty and Austrian legislation. “With this agreement, Slovenia has done more for the German ethnic group than for other ethnic groups,” stressed President Kucan and continued, saying that, “we must remain in continual dialogue while putting this agreement into effect if we want to achieve the objective set out at the beginning of negotiations … we must not set out along this road in silence or troubled by ancient fears. If there is no dialogue the agreement could become a cause of hindrance. The worst possible situation would be if in five years time the document was not extended as this document puts the responsibility of both states into a new light. The cultural agreement is vital for Slovenia and Austria and their legitimacy before the world,” stressed President Kucan.



Photo: BOBO

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC