Slovenia has organized a conference in Ljubljana to celebrate the Opening of the European Year for Intercultural Dialogue during the period from 7 to 8 January 2008. Ambassador Raouf Saad headed the Egyptian delegation to the conference. The European Council and Parliament decided to designate 2008 the Year of Intercultural Dialogue, with the aim of creating a more profound understanding and respect for diverse European cultures and the various cultural identities surrounding it in order to live in a manifold, broadminded society. The Slovenian Minister of culture asserted that his country's hosting this conference as the first activity taking place under the rotating Slovenian presidency to the European Union, with the EU's choice of the slogan "Together in Diversity" for the European year for dialogue between cultures, aims to invest the positive points of the cultural diversity to the benefit of Europe's future, and foster the European sense of belonging despite their diverse ethnic origins.  During the conference, deliberations focused on two key axes: First: the Media: The necessity to promote the media product was asserted, in order to serve the intercultural dialogue and get acquainted with the ideas, culture and heritage all over Europe and the world. The Conference also stressed on the necessity of respecting ethnic and language minorities in European countries and addressing them through the media which represents its culture and language. Second: Sustainable economic development and dialogue: The discussions raised the issue that economy under globalization has become a good means for conveying values and principles, investments were transferred from one place to another with hardly any limitations, which requires international cooperation regulated through national and international concurrence, such as the concurrence reached at the Bali Climate Change Conference. Ambassador Raoof Saad indicated that in order for the dialogue between cultures to fulfill its meaning, the problems of immigrants and minorities must be discussed, especially the governmental policies towards them, the role of economy in bridging the cultural gap, the balance between freedom of expression and respect for the Other, the responsibility of governments in preserving the coherence of the societies with all its classes and the economic and social rights of these classes within a wider frame for human rights. In this concern, it was said that Europe has committed two main mistakes regarding immigrants and minorities: First: that it did not adopt the appropriate policies for dealing with them especially in the 1960s and 1970, when groups of immigrants flocked to Europe. Secondly: that it didn't have efficient use for economy in dealing with their issues, which deepened both economic and cultural gaps between them and the native inhabitants. The Slovenian President highlighted that the ceremony held to celebrate launching the dialogue that Europe has to eradicate the impression that it is a closed Continent, in which very few, selected classes can enter, and the necessity that the intercultural dialogue tackles issues such as supporting human rights and contributing in the creation of a fairer society.