Representatives of countries. international organisations and civil society from across the globe will gather in the lakeside town of Bled for the annual strategic forum on 2 and 3 September to discuss topical challenges. The forum's secretary general Peter Grk says this year's theme, A World of Parallel Realities, reflects the need to find ways to overcome geopolitical and social divisions.

"As individuals, as countries, we are drifting further and further apart, losing the shared points, the lowest common denominators that would take us forward as society to a world that would be more stable, more peaceful and, above all, more sustainable," Grk explained the choice of the title of the 19th Bled Strategic Forum (BSF) in an interview with the Slovenian Press Agency.

He hopes the event will contribute to dialogue and raising the awareness of the need to look for ways to overcome discord. "With this title, we wanted to show that we are living in a very unpredictable world and we need to address this unpredictability effectively as soon as possible."

This year's event will be special because it will take place when Slovenia takes over the presidency of the UN Security Council for a month as a non-permanent member.

"In this context the BSF reflects the greater responsibility that Slovenia has in the international community, the new breadth, the realisation that Slovenia, through its levers of soft power, which the BSF is, can address even the most difficult problems of the international community," Grk says.

On the one hand, this year's forum will link to Slovenia's membership in the UN Security Council, while on the other hand the BSF also wanted to broach all the issues that are crucial for Slovenia, as well as for the future of geostrategic relations in the world.

The BSF will address both acute issues such as the crises in Ukraine and the Middle East as well as problems that require more long-term refection. Grk finds that the international community is occupied by pressing challenges that need to be resolved as soon as possible but which also divert attention away from issues that are also vital for the further development of society, starting with climate change.

The first day of the event will see a focus on the future of the European Union, with President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen as one of the speakers.

On the same day, a section dedicated to the war in Ukraine and its wider impact will open with the presentation of the BSF Distinguished Partner Award to Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny. The event will also be addressed by Russian opposition activist and chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov.

The third part of the day will focus on the Middle East and the war in Gaza, which Grk says will try to shed light on the conflict from different angles.

Along with Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon, one of the participants in the panel on Gaza will be former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. Her participation has upset two pro-Palestinian groups, who have urged the government to disinvite her.

Grk believes that the BSF is a platform for confronting different opinions, including those we disagree with, because only an inclusive dialogue can lead to sustainable solutions to the most pressing global challenges.

Other topics to be discussed in Bled include EU enlargement, the US presidential election, cyber security, the fight against disinformation, energy security, the green transition and water security.

"I believe that this year we are showing the breadth of Slovenian foreign policy. We are showing that, in fact, even as a small country, we can have a significant impact on developments in the international community," Grk said a few days before Slovenia's biggest foreign policy event gets under way.

In the run-up to the forum, Bled will host the Young BSF between 30 August and 1 September and its participants will be even more involved in the main event this year.