FM says Slovenia committed to Ukraine peace talks

"If we are talking about how to reach a ceasefire and peace, we will be part of the talks the whole time as Europe's wish is to sit at the negotiating table. And Slovenia is part of this Europe," Fajon said on Thursday, touching on Slovenia's participation in the coalition of the willing for a peace in Ukraine.

"If we are talking about military presence on Ukrainian soil under the current circumstances, Slovenia does not find this acceptable," she said. The country would consider the possibility if the forces were deployed under a UN mandate, Fajon said.

She echoed the sentiment of both President Nataša Pirc Musar and Prime Minister Robert Golob, who said after a meeting two weeks ago that there was no way that Slovenian troops would be deployed to Ukraine in the current situation.

The two-day NATO ministerial, mostly dedicated to preparations for the 2025 NATO summit in The Hague in June, will also focus on increasing defence spending.

"We are aware that Slovenia will have to do more, including that the goal of 2% of GDP will have to be reached in the shortest time possible," Fajon said, noting that the discussion on this is still ongoing in Slovenia.

The negotiations on increasing NATO's defence spending targets will have to focus on not doing this at the expense of the welfare state, the minister said.

At the meeting Fajon plans to raise concern over the situation in the Western Balkans. "We need strong states in the Balkans that will continue their path towards the EU," she said, expressing concern over political tensions in Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Bosnian court issued an arrest warrant for Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik over suspicions of attacking the country's constitutional order.