This is a very emotional visit for me because I remember vividly, last year, when I was here, the devastation, the destruction of the floods and this horrible mud that was covering everything, debris on the road and in the river, destroyed bridges. It was just a nightmare.
And there is a second thing I remember vividly, this is the amazing solidarity of the people of Slovenia, here in Črna. You really stood together against the floods, and worked together for reconstruction and recovery. This was amazing to see, and therefore it is so emotional for me to be here after one year, because I see now what was rebuilt over the year.
I said a year ago, 'Europe is by your side'. Today, I say it once again. We have the Solidarity Fund, from which we have immediately released EUR 100 million pre-financing. It was in December last year. And there is good news: Last week, in the European Commission, we agreed on additional EUR 328 million from the Solidarity Fund to be invested mainly in infrastructure repair. So it was for me very important to see the road, to see the bridges and to learn about the progress.
One thing is for sure, I have seen that hope is back in Črna, and you can count on me. Thank you very much for the invitation.
