Slovenia's National Assembly President contacts Russian Duma head

Zoran Stevanović, President of the Slovenian National Assembly, has exchanged messages with Vyacheslav Volodin, President of the Russian State Duma. This marks the first direct contact between the heads of the two parliaments since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.

Stevanović, representing the Istina party, stated that dialogue with both Russia and Ukraine is necessary to achieve a peace agreement and indicated he would visit Moscow upon receiving an invitation. Russian diplomat Yuri Pilipson welcomed the initiative, describing it as evidence of “reasonable judgment” by European politicians seeking to restore dialogue, though he noted that Slovenia's official foreign policy remains aligned with EU and NATO doctrines.

Slovenian opposition figures and government officials have criticized the move. Franc Breznik, Chair of the Foreign Policy Committee, emphasized that Slovenia’s official foreign policy toward the Russian Federation and Vladimir Putin’s regime remains clear, supporting Ukraine’s sovereignty and condemning Russian aggression. Critics have characterized Stevanović’s actions as a partisan rather than a diplomatic mission.