A message about the phone conversation was published on Putin’s official website and confirmed by the office of the Slovenian president. Putin has accepted Pahor’s invitation to take part in the 100th anniversary commemoration of the Russian Chapel at Vršič mountain pass in Slovenia, report TV Slovenia’s correspondent Vlasta Jeseničnik.
Namely, Pahor contacted Putin in mid-May, extending an invitation for the Russian president to make an official visit to Slovenia and attend the Russian Chapel ceremony, organised as a commemoration of a tragic event 100 years ago, during the first world war, when an avalanche killed Russian captive soldiers who were building the road that now leads across the Vršič mountain pass.
In his invitation to Putin, Pahor wrote that they differed in opinion regarding certain open issues, but that for this reason the need for dialogue is even stronger. According to media reports, Pahor has had to face quite a lot of pressure from the American diplomacy that he should refrain from inviting the Russian president to Slovenia.
Putin has visited Slovenia twice so far. During his first visit, in 2001, Putin met with the then president of the United States George Bush. He was invited to Slovenia again in 2011, visiting the then Prime Minister Pahor to discuss the South Stream gas line project.
