Prime Minister Miro Cerar has voiced apprehension about Slovenia being made part of a coalition of countries that the United States deems form a coalition against the Islamic State.
Slovenia opposes terrorism and being on the list is not controversial per se but "I am bothered by the fact that we have been placed on the list without the government's knowledge," he told Radio Slovenija in an interview.
"We will have to voice some sort of protest, it is not appropriate to consent to our country being placed anywhere without our knowledge and consensus," he said.
While Cerar said that the government would concede after it has thoroughly examined the matter, he excluded any possibility of it taking part in military action against the terrorist organisation.
The Foreign Ministry said today Slovenia had not participated in the compiling of the list, but "as a responsible part of the international community, and an EU and NATO member, it is part of efforts to fight terrorism as a threat to international peace and stability."
It said the government had not yet debated any specific contributions, whose scope is "limited". "But any decisions will be in compliance with international law and Slovenian legislation," the press release reads.
The State Department said being on the list did not mean direct military engagement, as efforts to counter the organisation also include military support to the Iraqi partners, stopping the flow of foreign fighters, countering ISIS funding, addressing the humanitarian crisis, and de-legitimizing the group's ideology.
But the move has been subject to criticism in Slovenia, with some media saying it was reminiscent of the controversial Vilnius Declaration of 2003 in which ten East European countries supported the US military intervention in Iraq.
Source: SloveniaTimes
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