Earlier this month, Janša’s party backed the pro-Russian Resni.ca party’s bid to have its leader, Zoran Stevanović, elected speaker of Slovenia’s parliament. The move was widely interpreted as signaling an alliance between the two populist parties, but following his own meeting with Pirc Musar on Monday, Janša acknowledged his party had not yet secured the support required to return to power.
The populist leader, who has already served as Slovenia’s prime minister on three separate occasions, added his party was comfortable forming a government, remaining in the opposition, or participating in repeat elections. “All three options are good for us,” he said.
If Janša, a self-professed admirer of Donald Trump, succeeds in forming a government, he would return to the European Council just as his ally, outgoing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, is set to stop attending the periodic summits of EU leaders.