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Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia

02/06/2026 | Press release | Archived content

Regrettable action by the Carinthian State Parliament – MP reprimanded for using the Slovene language

The Slovenian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs fully supports Franc Jožef Smrtnik, a member of the Carinthian State Parliament (Landtag), who was reprimanded during yesterday's session for using three Slovene phrases in his six-minute address.

Seventy years after the signing of the Austrian State Treaty, which in Article 7 sets out Austria's obligations towards the Slovenian minority, it is unacceptable that the Slovenian minority in Austrian Carinthia must still struggle to exercise the right to use the Slovene language. The reprimand also goes against the spirit of the Carinthian constitution, which provides that, alongside German, Carinthia recognises the linguistic and cultural diversity of the Slovenian national minority. The symbolic use of a few Slovene words in MP Smrtnik's speech cannot reasonably be considered a breach of the Carinthian State Parliament's rules of procedure, nor as a threat to anyone in Austrian Carinthia.

This incident is regrettable and undermines the achievements made in fostering coexistence between the majority and minority populations in Carinthia. Slovenia therefore expects the Austrian authorities, at both state and federal level, to do more to ensure that the rights and dignity of the Slovenian national minority are fully respected.

Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia published this content on February 06, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on February 09, 2026 at 12:59 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]