STA, 29 October 2019 - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar met Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash on day two of his working visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), discussing with him further cooperation and the situations in the Middle East and Western Balkans, the Foreign Ministry said in a press release on Tuesday.
In the afternoon, Cerar officially inaugurated in Abu Dhabi Slovenia's first embassy in a Gulf country, which has been operating since 2018.
Cerar said in his address that the embassy was an "important step forward in deepening Slovenian relations with the UAE and the region". A similar a sentiment was expressed by Gargash in their meeting earlier in the day.
"Our countries share common values and mutual interests and it is time now to unleash our full potential for cooperation." Slovenia highly values "the role of the UAE in sustainable development, modern technology, food safety, exploration of space."
??FM @MiroCerar and state minister Ahmed al Sayegh just opened the Slovenian embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE, the 1st Slovenian embassy in the Gulf region. @govSlovenia #Slovenia pic.twitter.com/FnYTIzIYYs
— SLOVENIAN MFA (@MZZRS) October 29, 2019
"Slovenia also possesses rich experiences and extensive knowledge in many areas and is keen on sharing these with our friends and partners," said the foreign minister.
After visiting the grounds of 2020 Expo in Dubai yesterday, Cerar said at the embassy opening that the exhibition was the first major opportunity for to promote Slovenia and said that the help of some 300 Slovenians living in UAE would be very important in this respect.
Cerar's talks with Gargash meanwhile focused on the Middle East and the Western Balkans, as well as Yemen and the importance of bringing an end to the suffering of civilian population.
Cerar also presented to Gargash a project by ITF - Enhancing Human Security in Yemen. It was reported earlier in the year that the Slovenia-run fund was supported in this project with a EUR 600,000 donation from the UAE.
This morning a commission for economic cooperation brought together representatives of a number of Slovenians and UAE ministries to discuss cooperation projects in business, logistics, science and artificial intelligence.
