Interreligious and intercultural dialogue will be among Slovenia’s foreign policy priorities during its EU presidency in the first half of 2008.

Slovenia had already recently underlined the importance of intercultural dialogue during its chairmanship of the Human Security Network (HSN) between June 2006 and May 2007.

Within the framework of the UN, Slovenia participates in two initiatives aimed at encouraging interfaith and intercultural dialogue:

“Alliance of Civilizations”

On the initiative of Spain and Turkey, a so-called “Group of Friends” of the Alliance of Civilizations was formed. The initiative was officially endorsed by the then UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, on 14 July 2005.

In the autumn of 2005, Kofi Annan established a high-level group of the Alliance of Civilizations, which prepared a report on the work of the initiative. The Report, presented in Istanbul, Turkey on 13 November 2006, outlined concrete steps in the areas of the media, education, youth and migration. Slovenia’s contribution to the Report was sent to the Secretariat of the Alliance of Civilizations and focused on the education of young people on human rights. In autumn 2006, on Slovenia’s initiative, the Human Security Network presented concrete proposals for the work of the initiative in the areas of education on human rights, the media, prevention of violence against children, and integrating women in post-conflict stabilisation and education.

On 26 April 2007, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon designated Jorge Sampaio, former Portuguese president, as High Representative of the Alliance of Civilizations. On 15 June 2007, High Representative Sampaio presented the Alliance of Civilizations Implementation Plan 2007–2009, setting out the objectives of the initiative, its structural framework, main events and specific projects of the Alliance.

Among others, state members of the Group of Friends convene annually at the level of foreign ministers on the margins of the UN General Assembly session.

Since 2005, Slovenia has been contributing funds for the operation of the initiative.

“Tripartite Forum on Interfaith Cooperation for Peace”

The Forum was established on 24 March 2006 on the initiative of the Philippines and conceived as a tripartite partnership between governments, the UN system and civil society. The Forum’s objective is to promote interreligious cooperation, a culture of peace and dialogue among civilisations. The initiative’s secretariat operates at the Permanent Representation of the Philippines to the United Nations in New York. State members of the Forum also meet at the ministerial level on the margins of the UN General Assembly session.