This Department monitors, coordinates and drafts the positions of Slovenia to be represented at various levels of the EU Council (Working Parties, Committee of Permanent Representatives II – Coreper II, meetings of the Council at the ministerial level) and the meetings of the European Council.

At the ministerial level of the EU Council, the Department follows the work of three formations: General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) – General Affairs, Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA), and Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN).

It also participates in the inter-ministerial preparation of Slovenian positions. This means primarily that the advisers on the basis of acquired information:

• inform the line ministries about the points on the agendas for meetings of the EU Council and the European Council;

• identify the key open issues of the discussed acts;

• coordinate and prepare the positions of the Republic of Slovenia to the discussed points and, in cooperation with the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Slovenia to the EU, enter its possible reservations;

• ensure that the competent authorities prepare the starting points for Slovenian participation in formal and informal meetings of the EU Council in time;

• collaborate with Slovenian members of the European Parliament and the Committee of Regions.

It drafts positions, starting points and other documents for:

• General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) and the European Council where the GOEA shares the responsibility with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;

• negotiations on Union's enlargement process;

• Working Party 1 – General and Institutional Affairs.

Together with Department for Coordination I and with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it conducts the preparation of the Declaration on Activities of the Republic of Slovenia in the Institutions of the European Union for every current year which represents the general framework for drafting of positions to proposals of EU acts and measures; it follows the work of the parliamentary Committee on EU Affairs, collaborates with parliamentary expert bodies in the field of EU affairs, and from time to time organizes trainings on coordination of EU affairs for the staff of line ministries and government offices.

The Department provides support to the Working Group for European Affairs presided by State Secretary for European Affairs and to the Operative Working Group for European Affairs chaired by Directore of Directorate for Coordination.

It covers the following fields: general and institutional affairs, development aid, common commercial policy, defence and security, structural policy, immigration and asylum, judicial cooperation, police cooperation and drugs, civil protection and humanitarian aid, macroeconomic policy and the EMU, financial services and free movement of capital, taxation, EU budget, legislative and judicial matters, statistics.

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