General Affairs Council on the rule of law in the four EU candidate countries for the first time

State Secretary Marko Štucin and Ambassador Iztok Jarc | Author EU

In the framework of the annual Rule of Law Dialogue, the General Affairs Council held a horizontal debate on the situation in the Union based on the European Commission's 2024 Rule of Law Report published in July. State Secretary Štucin welcomed the encouragingly high level of implementation of last year's Commission recommendations in the Member States, as well as the strong emphasis the latest report puts on media freedom and pluralism. He stressed that free media and a safe environment for journalists are important elements of the rule of law, which is a key prerequisite for the functioning of the Union and stable democracies.

For the first time, the General Affairs Council also discussed general trends in the rule of law in the four selected candidate countries: Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania and Serbia, which were included in this year's Commission's report following its assessment of progress. On behalf of Slovenia, State Secretary Štucin expressed his satisfaction with their inclusion in the report and with the opportunity for these candidate countries to join Member States in the debate on the rule of law as a common fundamental value that unites us. He saw this as a recognition of their work to date and an encouragement for further reform efforts.

In the debate on the draft agenda for the October European Council, State Secretary Štucin drew attention to the serious situation in the Middle East, urged all parties to respect international law and stressed the need for EU unity. He reiterated Slovenia's support for Ukraine, expressed Slovenia's readiness to address the current situation in Moldova and Georgia and called for the organisation of free and fair elections. Marko Štucin welcomed the Draghi report on the competitiveness of the European economy and stressed the importance of private financing, energy-intensive industries and investment in clean energy infrastructure, as well as support for small and medium-sized enterprises, including the new category of small companies with a medium market capitalisation.

The agenda of the ministerial meeting also included a presentation of the Hungarian Presidency's priorities for the Council for the rest of this year. In this context, State Secretary Štucin underlined the importance of continuing to focus on peace-building in Ukraine and the Middle East.