BasketBall Diplomacy Recently, a friendship basketball game between Georgetown and Marquette Universities took place in Washington, D.C. At half-time, a Basketball Diplomacy project was promoted and celebrated. The project was organized jointly by Georgetown University and the U.S. State Department this past summer. The project was a summer basketball camp in August 2010, in Planica, Slovenia, attended by over 50 young players (ages 14-16) from Slovenia, Croatia, and Montenegro, under the guidance of six Georgetown University coaches and players.

The project, through sports activities, promotes education and stresses the importance of friendship between countries. The Basketball Diplomacy event, presented during the Washington basketball game was aimed at promoting international cooperation and openness of Georgetown University. The game was attended, among others, by Ambassador Kirn, Ambassador of Slovenia. Also present at the game were: Spencer Boyer, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy at the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs; Ambassador of Montenegro Srdjan Darmanović; and Vice Skračić, Deputy Chief of Mission, from the Embassy of Croatia. As a sign of appreciation, the guests received a G.U. basketball.

FIRST PAGE STORY

Embassy of Slovenia2410 California Street, NWWashington, D.C. 20008, USAT: +1202 386 66 01www.washington.embassy.si

EMBASSYNEWSLETTER

February 25, 2011

•  BASkETBAll DIPlOmAcY

•  ThE FIRST EU AGEncY In SlOvEnIA - AcER

•  InvITATIOn TO U.S.-SlOvEnIA BUSInESS BRIDGE

•  2012 EU US vISTORS PROGRAm

•  Kavčič Wins In FlORIDA, Majdič Bronze in hOlmEnkOlln

•  PERSOnAl STORY•  lIST TO DO

February 25, 20112

The first EU Agency in Slovenia - ACER

POLITICS

On March 3, 2011, the first European Union agency with its seat in Slovenia – the European Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) – will open its doors in Ljubljana. The Agency is becoming ever more important in the time of growing efforts to strengthen the cooperation among EU countries in the energy field and the possible formation of the Single European Energy Market. Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Žbogar, in November 2010 signed the Agreement on Headquarters between the Government of the Republic of Slovenia and

the Agency. The Agreement provides the legal basis for the functioning of the Agency and settles issues regarding the Agency’s seat, privileges and immunities, as well as other rights and obligations of the Republic of Slovenia and the Agency. The opening ceremony will take place at ACER Headquarters in Ljubljana, with addresses by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor; the Minister of Economy, Darja Radić; the ACER Director, Alberto Pototschnig; and the European Commissioner for Energy, Günther Oettinger.

Invitation to U.S.-Slovenia Business Bridge

BuSINESS

U.S.-Slovenia Business Bridge -- a conference focused on attracting U.S. businesses to Slovenia -- will be held in Ljubljana from April 7 to April 9, 2011. On the first day, the participants will have a chance to interact with high-level Slovenian Government officials whereas the second day will be dedicated to the entrepreneurial spirit and opportunities for accessing venture capital. U.S.-Slovenia Business Bridge is

organized by AmCham Slovenia, the Public Agency of the Republic of Slovenia for Entrepreneurship and Foreign Investments (JAPTI), the United States Embassy in Ljubljana, and the Center for Entrepreneurship and Executive Development (CEED).Conference agenda and information available at :http://www.amcham.si/resources/Documents/Events/Application/ba260e0b9b07485e8738de543a46484d.pdf

2012 EU Visitors Program

Eu NEwS

The deadline for the registering at the 2012 European Union Visitors Program (EUVP) is March 1, 2011. The long-standing program provides young professionals with a unique opportunity to learn from the inside how the European institutions work. Participants meet with specialists in fields of

their choice as they follow extensive programs tailored specifically to their interests in the EU. The 5 to 8 day program in Brussels, Strasbourg, and/or Luxembourg is jointly sponsored and administered by the European Parliament and the European Commission. More info on: www.eurunion.org/delegati/

February 25, 20113

Experience of Slovenian Independence

PErSONaL STOry

Dear readers, in a previous Newsletters, we invited you to send us short (not more than 350 words) reminiscences about how you experienced, wherever you were, the Slovenian declaration of independence and the process of gaining Slovenian statehood.

We still encourage you to send us your contributions to: vwa@gov.si, with the subject title My experience of Slovenian independence.

Kavčič Wins in Florida, Majdič bronze in Holmenkolln

SPOrT

Slovenia’s highest ranked men’s tennis player, Blaž Kavčič, advanced out of the qualifying rounds at the Delray Beach International Tennis Tournament in Florida, U.S. to face Colombian David Farah. Playing in 85-degree heat, Kavčič appeared to play his most aggressive tennis of the tournament to date, winning the match 6-1, 6-4, after dropping serve once in the second set, but coming back to win the last three games of the set, up triple match point, and closing out the match on his opponent’s serve.

Also, congratulations to Petra Majdič, who once again got a medal at the biggest championship. The World Cross Country Ski Championship in Norway’s Holmenkolln started in the best of ways for Slovenia. Petra Majdič, the best Slovenian cross country skier, won bronze medal in the first free-style race. The success was even sweeter since Vesna Fabjan added a great fourth place.

February 25, 20114

Personal story of an Experience of Slovenian

PErSONaL STOry

It was 1991 and we were newlywed young doctors in the U.S., one of us a native born Slovenian. We heard from family and in the media about the attacks on Slovenia by theSerbian army. Particularly disconcerting was the Serbian Air Force advantage.One of us wrote a letter to the local newspaper, which was published under our pseudonyms; it detailed the problems in Slovenia at the time. We also wrote a letter to then President Bush spelling out the problems and requesting that he send Stinger missiles to the Slovenians. A few weeks later, a helicopter was shot down near one of our family’s homes in Ljubljana and we began to hear reports about other aircraft becoming victims of Stinger missiles. Undaunted, we decided on a summer honeymoon in…Slovenia. On arrival in Paris, one of us was nearly deported for not having a visa. Our Eurail trip from Paris to Austria included surprise inspections by border guards with machine guns and dogs. They would flick on the lights in the middle of the night, wake us, and ask for identification. One look at the USA passport one of us carried calmed things down, but the older “Yugoslavian” passport the other of us carried caused some problems. We were traveling with backpacks and camping gear. We had visions of needing to escape the fighting by fleeing through the Alps. We wound up needing our gear, but only to camp in the Saint Moritz, Switzerland, campground. From Austria, family members drove us through the Alps to Slovenia via the Karavanke tunnel. That lack of a visa back in Paris meant we had to travel to the French Embassy in Croatia to get a visa for our return flight home from France. Traveling from Slovenia to Croatia by auto we passed numerous “tank-traps,” military outfits, and armed soldiers. Military aircraft flew overhead. We were approached by a young man of military age at a post office in Croatia. He was in civilian clothes and spoke perfect English and Slovene. He claimed to have been born of a Slovenian mother in the very hospital one of us was now training in back in the States. He gave us his name and said he lived in England. He asked us a number of questions, and told us there was fighting 30 km away. A few months later, I was never able to find him or his name and address while in London. Was he with an intelligence agency? Well, it was a relief to get the visa one of us needed in Zagreb and then finally return to Slovenia. The rest of the trip was uneventful not counting the twins that we conceived in Paris or Ljubljana.

Doctors with Twins (The Battins).

February 25, 20115

The weekly Embassy Newsletter, produced by the Embassy of Slovenia in Washington., is available on: www.washington.embassy.si.

Send us your comments or request for a subscription on: vwa@gov.si, Editors: Maša Šiftar de Arzu, Neja Brglez

List To Do

LIST OF EVENTS

1. Così Fan Tutte

Slovenian opera soprano Sabina Cvilak will perform in Mozart’s opera Così fan tutte in Palm Beach Opera.When: Friday, February 25, 26, 27 and February 28, 2011 at 7:30 PM Where: Palm Beach Opera, 415 S. Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach, FL 33401More info: www.pbopera.org

4. Welcome Home 2011

For the 20th Anniversary of Slovenia’s Independence, various events will take place both in Slovenia and around the world. One of the biggest events will be the WELCOME HOME event, a Slovenian get-together, which will be held in Ljubljana.When: July 1, 2011Where: Ljubljana, Slovenia More info: www.slovenia.info/homecoming.

2. U.S. - Balkans Business Summit

The summit that will strengthen economic and commercial ties amongst the United States and the countries of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia.When: March 23- 24, 2011Where: Baltimore (MD)More info: www.usbalkanssummit.com

3. U.S. - Slovenia Business Bridge

The conference will focus on opportunities for U.S. investors, who will have a chance to interact with high-level Slovenian Government Officials and network with Slovenian firms of interest.When: April 7-9, 2011Where: Ljubljana, SLOMore info: http://www.amcham.si/resources/Documents/Events/Application/ba260e0b9b07485e8738de543a46484d.pdf