Weak brotherhood
A staggering majority of Slovenians voted for European Union membership (89%) in the country's recent accession referendum, while only a slightly smaller percentage opted for joining NATO.
The second result particularly disproved pre-referendum polls, but experts believe that the yes vote on NATO was motivated mainly by an intensive government campaign as well as the recent assassination of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic. The incident, according to one expert, "reminded Slovenians that they live in an unstable region," and "the strongest argument behind the yes vote was the fear that arguments and unease in southeastern Europe are not entirely over." The other yes vote makes Slovenia the first central and eastern European candidate country to accept EU accession.
The 66% support for NATO accession is striking for a nation that was never a member of the Warsaw Pact military alliance when it was a part of the former Yugoslavia. Today the foreign policy priority of NATO membership drives Slovenia's defence reorganisation. When the arms embargo was lifted on Slovenia in 1996, the country embarked on a military procurement programme to bolster its status as a NATO candidate.
Despite the fact that Poland and Slovenia are NATO members and will both join the EU in 2004, their trade relations have not had much opportunity to develop in recent years. Until now, they have been strongly dominated by Slovenian investments here, mainly in the pharmaceutical sector.
Slovenian drugs producer Lek, owned by Novartis, recently announced plans to expand its investments here. Lek is expected to double the production capacity of its planned plant in Stryków near Łódź, which is to be completed by 2005.
"We had already increased the planned output from 0.8 billion to 1.5 billion capsules," said Marko Dolzan, president of Lek Polska. "We have decided to increase the pace of our investment due to ownership changes, which have given us access to new markets. The costs of the investment, now almost €39 million, will increase by about 20%."
The company will also open a new logistics centre to manage its increased import and export capabilities.
"From the start, exports will constitute 20% of all our products," Dolzan said. "However, the Stryków plant will become the second largest right after the plant in Ljubljana."
Lek is one of the most recognisable Slovenian brands on our market, with Krka pharmaceuticals, Gorenje household appliances and the legendary Elan skis not far behind. Krka has been present here since the 1970s when it made its debut under the name of Jugolek. When Slovenia regained its independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991, Krka created its own branch in Warsaw and opened a Polish subsidiary in 1997.
But apart from these established investments, which have been present long enough to be mistaken for domestic brands, an average Pole asked about his knowledge of Slovenia will only tell you that the world's largest ski jump is in the mountain town of Planica.
Some may also remember that in April 1990 Slovenia's general elections made it the first Yugoslav republic to shake off 45 years of communism and that it eventually gained its independence in June 1991 when it defied the Yugoslav army. In January 1992, it was officially recognised as a state by the EU.
>From a tourist's point of view, Slovenia has it all: a coastline, Alpine slopes and peaceful towns that capture styles ranging from the Gothic to the Baroque. But according to the World Tourism Organisation, Poles ranked 14th in 2001 as the nation's most numerous visitors, accounting for only 0.8% of the total visits. Our travel agencies and the Slovenian authorities are working hard to portray that small country as more than a transit destination on the way to neighbouring Croatia.
"Few people visit Slovenia in the summer; they are more likely to go skiing there," said a sales representative at Warsaw-based travel agency Adriatyk. "Compared with Croatia, we get very few inquiries about Slovenia."
Understandably, the distance and lack of a common history make for very weak ties between Poland and Slovenia that hardly go beyond the "Slav brothers" stereotype.
As for Polish investments in Slovenia, there are hardly any.
"Slovenia resists foreign capital quite successfully," said Grażyna Chorążykiewicz, Polish commercial counsellor in Slovenia. "It wants to manage on its own, and that is the general attitude of the people as well as of the government.
"Slovenians are more likely to promote their own exports, to invest and export abroad." She added: "But I can't say the same about Polish firms; their lack of initiative limits the possibility of export increase and hinders the competitive edge of Polish products on the local market."
The lack of interest and initiative from Polish entrepreneurs who do not attempt to develop stronger business ties or barter arrangements is responsible for the fact that we rank as Slovenia's 16th importer. Slovenians, on the other hand, perceive our market as filled with a lot of potential, and Poland as a country where one can successfully run a business. This perception of foreign markets combined with the fact that Slovenia was the most productive of the Yugoslav republics explains why today it is one of the most successful countries in central Europe. Slovenian enterprises have a long tradition of market orientation that has served them well in the transition period.
"They are very energetic entrepreneurs, and they are not afraid to search for investment niches abroad," Chorążykiewicz said.
But with more than 60% of all Slovenian exports going to the European Union and a similar percentage of products being imported from the EU into Slovenia, it is clear which markets this minute nation is really aiming for. Slovenia's four largest trade partners are all from the EU: Germany, Italy, France and Austria, while the fifth largest is Croatia.
With an overwhelming majority support for EU accession, Slovenia will now have more of an opportunity to attract foreign tourism as well as to expand its businesses abroad. But the nation, which only a year after gaining independence decided to become a full member of the EU, has also made some significant concessions in favour of EU member states. A proposal dubbed the "Spanish Compromise" stipulates that Slovenia ought to make a commitment to grant to EU citizens who have permanent residency on the present Slovenian territory for a period of three years the right to purchase the property on a reciprocal basis. Only last month, the property market in Slovenia was fully liberalised, allowing all citizens of EU states to purchase property in the country.
