Israel Opens First Embassy In Slovenia, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar Thanks Slovenia

Israel opened its first embassy in Slovenia in Ljubljana on Wednesday, with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar thanking Slovenia for “the friendship you have shown when it comes to Israel” during the inauguration ceremony.

“Saar lauded Slovenia for "the friendship you have shown when it comes to Israel"”

Al-Monitor

The opening was described by the Israeli Foreign Ministry as a sign of warming relations after populist Janez Jansa formed a centre-right government following elections in March, and Saar and Slovenian Foreign Minister Tone Kajzer held a joint press conference after the ceremony.

ABNA English

Saar told reporters that Israel was “not planning to expel or to deport anyone from (the) Gaza Strip,” adding that if residents choose to leave Gaza “of their own accord” to countries ready to receive them, Israel would not oppose it.

The Times of Israel said the embassy opening came a day after the United Kingdom and other European countries provoked Israeli fury by banning imports from settlements in the West Bank, while Al-Monitor framed the move as part of a diplomatic reset under Jansa.T

Al-Monitor also reported that Slovenia’s pivot included reversing its own ban on imports from the settlements and lifting its arms embargo on Israel, alongside scrapping entry bans on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and two of his ministers.

The embassy opening drew domestic opposition in Ljubljana, where thousands gathered under heavy police presence to march through central Ljubljana to pass the hotel where the inauguration took place.

Protesters carried banners reading “We stand together for peace and Palestine” and “Genocide is not self-defence,” and Urska Breznik, a 48-year-old art historian, said the Jansa administration was “a collaboration government.”

Al Jazeera

In a different framing of the same political shift, Al-Monitor reported that the previous centre-left government described Israel's campaign in Gaza as “genocide,” while the new government received Israeli accolades for defying the EU over West Bank settlements.

The Times of Israel said a poll conducted by the daily newspaper Delo in June found that 56 percent of Slovenians opposed closer ties with Israel, while 14 percent supported them.T

Former president Danilo Turk told AFP that Slovenia has “become an instrument of Israeli policy,” as the embassy opening continued to be contested at home.

The embassy opening is tied in the sources to a broader effort to deepen cooperation, with Saar scheduled to begin a two-day visit and hold talks with Tone Kajzer while signing a memorandum on cultural cooperation.

“Saar was due to arrive in Slovenia on Wednesday for a two-day visit”

WTVB

WTVB, citing Reuters, said Saar would also lead a delegation of Israeli businessmen aiming to strengthen economic cooperation, and it described the move as a warming relations sign after Jansa formed a centre-right government following elections in March.

Al-Monitor reported that under Jansa Slovenia vetoed an EU statement condemning the settlements and reversed its own ban on imports from the settlements, while also lifting its arms embargo on Israel.

The Media Line quoted the Israeli Foreign Ministry saying, “Since taking office, Prime Minister Jansa and his new government in Slovenia have demonstrated their friendship toward Israel through both words and actions,” linking the diplomatic reset to support within the European Union.

At the same time, Roya News said the Hind Rajab Foundation filed a criminal complaint Tuesday with the Ljubljana District Prosecutor's Office and police against ‘Israeli’ Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, warning that “The opening of an embassy must not become a ceremony of impunity.”R