President of the European Council Charles Michel took stock of the situation in Slovenia hit hard by devastating floods and reiterated the European Commission’s promise to mobilize €400 million as a starting point to help the relief efforts.
“It is clear that Slovenia is facing a difficult situation, a complex situation. And we are thinking about what we can do to be operational and to be concrete. You know that the European Commission made a very important promise. We will mobilize €400 million as a starting point. You can also count on the Council and the Member States,” said Michel.
He praised the Slovenian people for their resilience saying,” I am here to reaffirm the European Union’s solidarity. I am very impressed by the courage of the Slovenian people.”
He praised Prime Minister Robert Golob for his determination and leadership amid the raging flood situation.
“Prime Minister, I am impressed by the Slovenian people, and I am impressed by your leadership. You have many friends all across Europe. You have many friends all across Europe. You can count on us. Today and in the future… because it will take time. We are and we will be by your side,” he said further.
The major part of Slovenia is reeling under catastrophic conditions caused by heavy rains in early August 2023. Now as the water receded the focus is on rebuilding the homes and lives of the people affected. The government is also taking measures to help rebuild the affected economy.
“I know that very quickly many European Union members and partners, including Ukraine, decided to provide concrete support. This is not enough and one thing is absolutely clear – we are not forgetting the Slovenian people. We are with you today Prime Minister and we are with all the Slovenian people. And we will be with you tomorrow. We will not forget what happened here,” he added.
He emphasized that “it is important to invest and to rebuild the country. It is also important to be better prepared because we know that in the future, probably not only in Europe, not only in Slovenia, we will face more and more natural disasters. It means that we need to be better prepared and to have money available, in case of need. So that we can act and react very quickly.”
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