The Slovenian Prime Minister Jansa is one of the most controversial heads of state and government in the EU.
Now his country is taking over the EU Presidency.
Right at the beginning there is a scandal.
Ljubljana - At the start of Slovenia's EU Council Presidency, a meeting between the EU Commission and Prime Minister Janez Jansa broke out.
EU Commission vice Frans Timmermans demonstratively boycotted the date for the family photo on Thursday after the talks in the Brdo Congress Center, because the right-wing national Jansa had previously complained in a working session about allegedly communist judges and MPs in his country. According to participants, a photo was even shown in which judges criticized by Jansa were circled.
The social democrat Timmermans told the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" that he simply could not stand on the same podium with Jansa after he had "unacceptably attacked and defamed" two judges and two members of the social democratic group in the EU Parliament. The independence of the judiciary and respect for the role of elected MEPs were a cornerstone of the rule of law, without which the EU could not function.
According to participants at the meeting, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pointed out to Jansa that judges are allowed to have a biography and that they have to be treated with respect, even if they have a different political opinion.
A spokesman for the Slovenian Presidency initially refused to comment on the matter.
He pointed out that the conversations were confidential.
Von der Leyen also initially did not mention the incident in a joint press conference with Jansa.
However, she warned him to adhere to the rule of law.
Trust is the EU's most valuable asset.
This also includes trust in an independent judicial system.
Influencing the judiciary and the media denounced
Slovenia had taken over the EU Presidency, which changes every six months, a few hours earlier from Portugal.
During its presidency, the former Yugoslav republic wants to work, among other things, for faster progress in EU accession talks with the Balkan countries that have not yet been admitted.
Because of Jansa's controversial political course, the country must fear that other issues will overshadow the presidency.
The right-wing politician is criticized, among other things, for obstructing the work of the new European Public Prosecutor's Office by blocking the dispatch of two Slovenian prosecutors.
He is also accused of attacking freedom of the press and supporting the controversial Hungarian law restricting information about homosexuality.
As a small country with only around 2.1 million inhabitants, Slovenia does not normally have a particularly large influence on European decision-making processes. As the EU presidency, however, it will now play an important mediating role for six months in the event of differences of opinion between the EU states. Slovenia has been a member of the EU since 2004 and also of NATO. dpa