A poll by the weekly Mladina (Feb. 17) showed that most Slovenians disapprove of the signing of the pro-U.S. policy Vilnius declaration concerning the Iraq crisis. Less then 18 percent of those polled agree with Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel's joining the Vilnius declaration, while an overwhelming 62 percent of the 600 persons polled are opposed to his action. Of those who disapprove of Slovenia's backing of the declaration, 38.2 percent maintain that the minister should resign, 40.9 percent are of the opposite opinion, while 20.9 percent were unsure what would be best. A U.S. attack against Iraq is opposed by 81.5 percent, four percent fully support it, while 9.9 percent would back it if it was given the green light by the UN Security Council.

Assistant UN Secretary General Danilo Tuerk reiterated the general public mood in an interview for Večer (Feb. 17). Slovenia does not need to join declarations that give some sort of "blank-check" for certain actions, said the Slovenian law expert. He disagrees with those who put the blame for the support of the declaration on the Foreign Minister, though. The whole matter, as presented in the media, focused all too much on who did it. Abroad, the impression is that Slovenia as a country joined the declaration and it does not matter who did it on behalf of the state, explained Tuerk. The Vilnius declaration definitely does not place Slovenia among countries that make serious decisions on serious matters, pointed out Tuerk. What is most important is that a truly sovereign country shows backbone in dealing with all international issues, said the UN official. He thought that Slovenia was in a tricky situation when joining the Vilnius document because the U.S. must ratify Slovenia's NATO accession protocol, but domestic opinion opposes U.S. policy on Iraq.

Bojko Bučar, a professor of international law, told the weekly Mag (Feb. 20) that the fact that Slovenia joined the Vilnius declaration does not mean that the country sided with the U.S. in an attack on Iraq without the consent of the UN Security Council. The text of the declaration clearly says that the Security Council should listen to U.S. arguments and take measures against Iraq, he noted. The question is, however, why the U.S. Senate claims that Slovenia is among the countries supporting unilateral action of the U.S. He thinks that based on the Vilnius declaration no such thing can be said, but there may be other statements in existence.

The daily Delo (Feb. 19) observed that the backing of the Vilnius declaration could sweep out Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel. The fact that Rupel took an unexpected two-day leave instead of accompanying the Prime Minister to Brussels led Delo to wonder whether Rupel would possibly resign, or be replaced, since he has become the focal point of criticism about Slovenia's pro-U.S. foreign policy. The chief Slovenian diplomat has become the personification of Slovenia's pro-American foreign policy, which is in marked contrast with public opinion. He has also become a screen behind which the Prime Minister and the president are hiding, said the daily referring to the fact that Prime Minister Anton Rop and President Janez Drnovšek have distanced themselves from Rupel's policy.

In an editorial (Feb. 21) published after Rupel reappeared in public, Delo wrote that the couple of days taken off by the Foreign Minister was too short a break to either rest or do some thinking. Although it looked for a moment that the Prime Minister was hinting at something when he said it would be good for Rupel to take some rest and do some thinking, Rupel was soon back to work as usual. The incumbent Foreign Minister personifies the biggest traumas of Slovenia's foreign policy: loyalty to the U.S. beyond reasonable limits, lack of solidarity with Europe, and a plunge down into the greyness of Eastern Europe, joining countries with no opinion or credibility. To dismiss Rupel from office would be deliverance for both the public and politicians. Symbolically, it would demonstrate a revision of present policy and show that the contempt of the ruling elite, which prefers to please the U.S. than its own voters, is too great, Delo said.

Adding more spin to public controversy surrounding the U.S. Iraq policy and Slovenia, Dnevnik (Feb. 20) reported that the U.S. had sent an unofficial request to the Slovenian administration asking for permission to transport military equipment via Slovenia to Turkey. According to Dnevnik, most of the equipment would be transported by rail and the U.S. has already filed a list of equipment it would like to transport through Slovenia. The list includes armoured vehicles, tanks, laser equipment and containers. The daily points out however, that there is a "legal void" because there is no legislation that deals with transport of equipment by a country preparing for war. The Slovenian government decided it would allow flights and transfers across its territory as part of international efforts to implement the UN Security Council resolutions on Iraq, but as Dnevnik highlights, only in case of a UN-approved action.

Commenting on the possible transport of U.S. military equipment, Prime Minister Anton Rop explained in an interview for Radio Slovenija (Feb. 20) that the legal issue can be solved by way of an international contract, which must be ratified by the parliament. Addressing fears that the U.S. request to transport military gear across Slovenia would signify that the country is taking part in the impending Iraqi war, Rop pointed out that this only concerns the protection of Turkey. So far, no request has been made that Slovenia co-operate in a military intervention in Iraq, Rop stressed.