Photo: Office of the First Lady of Ukraine
Dr Aleš Musar with Olena Zelenska and Eliza Jean Reid at the Global Soft Power Summit 2024
The Spouse of the President of Slovenia, Dr Aleš Musar, attended this year's Global Soft Power Summit at the invitation of Olena Zelenska, Spouse of the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the initiator of The Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen Global Platform. Dr Musar participated in a special panel alongside Olena Zelenska and Eliza Jean Reid, the First Lady of Iceland, discussing the role and (soft) power of First Ladies and Gentlemen in shaping the visibility, influence and reputation of their respective countries. Mr Musar also held a bilateral meeting with Mrs Zelenska on the sidelines of the conference.
London (United Kingdom), 1 Mar 2024
News
In this year's Global Soft Power Index report, Slovenia is ranked 56th out of the 193 UN member states included in Brand Finance's survey based on a sample of over 170,000 respondents from more than 100 different markets. Dr Aleš Musar, together with Olena Zelenska and Eliza Jean Reid, all of them members of The Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen Global Platform, discussed the role of world leaders' partners in the visibility and influence of countries. The panellists agreed that their role in the modern world is increasingly active, visible and influential, with First Ladies and Gentlemen becoming soft-power actors for their respective countries.
Dr Musar's work is aimed at establishing links between Slovenia and other countries to strengthen ties of friendship and develop good relations in a variety of fields, especially cultural heritage. "Being a soft-power actor is a privilege, an opportunity and a duty to actively contribute to building a society that is better, friendlier and based more on solidarity, by setting a good example," Dr Musar said after the conference, adding that one of the important tasks of using soft power is to draw attention to less visible or overlooked issues that deserve more attention.
In a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the conference, Dr Musar and Mrs Zelenska discussed joint projects between the two countries and within The Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen Global Platform. They devoted particular attention to the promotion of psychosocial support projects for children and their families currently underway in Ukraine, as well as to cooperation between the two countries in cultural heritage.
Dr Musar also attended the panel on the role of media and communications in shaping soft power with Alastair Campbell (former Head of Communications for Tony Blair), Fareed Zakaria (CNN media anchor) and David Lammy (Member of the UK Parliament), the panel on the role of soft power in promoting foreign direct investments and the keynote address by The Rt Hon Sir John Major KG CH, Prime Minister of the UK from 1990 to 1997.
