Juan David Latorre
“By helping Ukraine to defend itself, we are defending the space of freedom and democracy,” said Slovenia’s ambassador to Madrid, Robert Krmelj, during a reception to mark his country’s National Day.
“We are witnessing an unprovoked military aggression by Putin’s Russia against an independent, sovereign and democratic Ukraine. The war against Ukraine is unjust, unjustifiable and illegal. As an independent and democratic state, Ukraine has the right to decide its own future,” he added, before stressing that “it is our duty to offer it support and solidarity”.
Krmelj pointed out that, in this context, “the NATO summit in Madrid has taken on even greater importance” and expressed his hope that this conclave would “establish NATO’s strategic direction for the next decade and beyond”.
As for the bilateral relationship with Spain, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, the ambassador described it as “excellent and friendly”, characterised by “a high level of mutual understanding and adherence to the same European and transatlantic goals and values”. He added that economic cooperation and contacts at intergovernmental level have also been strengthened, while trade exchanges continue to grow, “which have almost reached their pre-pandemic level”.
The Slovenian ambassador also announced that, following the opening of a new honorary consulate in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria last autumn, he hopes to be able to continue expanding “the network of our honorary consuls in Spain”.
Finally, he assured that “our recent accession to the Euro-Mediterranean Group of EU member states, the EUMED 9, provides an important additional framework for further intensifying our cooperation in the European and Mediterranean context” and “demonstrates the desire to create closer ties with the Mediterranean member states of the EU, and with Spain specifically”.
