The strained relations between Croatia and Serbia have already started to affect Slovenia in terms of the economy, said Slovenian PM Miro Cerar after the regular session of the parliament. "After all, we experience every complication if we can’t cooperate well with the neighbouring countries, be it Croatia of any other," noted the PM.

The activities of Slovenian diplomats are also of great importance, since Serbia and Croatia need to receive all possible support to lower the tones and start communicating well in order to find a solution regarding the controlled passing of refugees over the border as well as the sufficient opening of the border for transport. "The Balkans is a flammable territory," warns Cerar.

Slovenian Foreign Affairs Minister Karl Erjavec received a phone call from his Serbian colleague Ivica Dačić. The latter wanted to inform Erjavec about the situation on the border between Croatia and Serbia. In his words, the relations between the two countries are very strained. If Croatia does not open the border for road transport by midnight on Wednesday, Serbia will trigger countermeasures.

During the conversation with Erjavec, Dačić assured Serbia had good control over the refugee situation, and asked the Slovenian colleague to inform fellow ministers, especially those from the EU, about the recent complications on the border with Croatia. "What we’re seeing is some unreasonable actions of Croatia during its pre-election time," critically evaluated Erjavec.

The Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has officially appealed to Croatia and Serbia, urging them to solve the current tensions in accordance with EU regulations and in the spirit of European values.

G. K., MMC; translated by K. Z.