Addressing reporters in Naklo (NW) on Sunday, Erjavec expressed concern over the situation in Ukraine. "Slovenia's position is that we must preserve Ukraine's integrity and sovereignty," he said, urging a peaceful resolution of the crisis.

"Slovenia's position is that it is necessary to find an appropriate solution through political dialogue because a war in this region would mean a disaster for the stability of Europe and wider."

Erjavec will take part in a crisis meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday which was called after Russian President Vladimir Putin got the parliament's approval for a potential troop deployment in Ukraine.

"Our position there will be that it's necessary to find a solution through political dialogue and diplomacy and that it's an imperative to preserve Ukraine's integrity," Erjavec said, warning against the possibility of Ukraine's disintegration as a "black scenario".

Erjavec expects the ministers will also discuss how to provide a financial aid to Ukraine as soon as possible. "The estimate is that Ukraine would need between 25 and 35 billion dollars at the moment."

Considering Slovenia's good relations with Russia, Erjavec plans to propose to the ministerial for Slovenia to try to act as a mediator.

"We can see that EU foreign ministers, in particular those from Poland, Germany and France, have already been engaged in dialogue between the opposition and the government. But we have been underscoring all the time that it is also necessary to be in a continuous dialogue with the Russian Federation."

Erjavec believes the main mistake was the EU's plan to sign a key trade and association agreement with Ukraine without dialogue with Russia.

"I think Slovenia could contribute to the resolution of the crisis by offering itself as a mediator between the Russian Federation and the European Union, as I believe a dialogue with the Russian Federation is also needed."

Erjavec believes an armed conflict in the Crimean peninsula in the south of Ukraine can still be avoided. "I don't think we have reached a point where it would have been beyond diplomacy to prevent a conflict," Erjavec said.