Ljubljana - President Borut Pahor met on Friday the head and members of the parliamentary delegation dedicated to the plenary sessions of the Conference on the Future of Europe. The participants exchanged assessments of the conference so far and their expectations for its conclusions, the president's office said.

The meeting with the president was attended by Branko Grims, the head of the delegation, Nik Prebil and Meira Hot, the delegation's members from the parliament's lower chamber, and Bojan Kekec, member from the upper chamber.

Also taking part were Gašper Dovžan, state secretary at the Foreign Ministry and co-chair of the executive board of the conference, and Igor Senčar, state secretary at the prime minister's office.

They all consider it very important that the conference is open to citizens and that the latter are involved in the discussions. Moreover, it is essential that their views are taken into account in the conference outcome documents.

The president's office noted in a press release that it had been at the initiative of Pahor himself and his Italian counterpart Sergio Mattarella that presidents of EU member states launched the conference with a letter calling on citizens to actively participate in the conference.

Some examples of good practice, such as the digital platform for citizens to express their views and suggestions, could be used beyond the formal conclusion of this citizen-led series of discussions, the release adds.

The Conference on the Future of Europe started in spring 2021 and is expected to last a year. It aims to strengthen the EU's vitality and strategic autonomy and its role in the world, a goal also pursued by the Slovenian presidency of the Council of the EU, which ended with the new year.