The strategic partnership agreement that was signed between Slovenia and Türkiye in 2011 shows the importance the two countries gave each other, Slovenian President Borut Pahor said.
Speaking to the Anadolu Agency (AA) in an interview during his official visit to Türkiye's capital Ankara, Pahor underlined Türkiye's strategic importance.
"I think it's good that there is a process of negotiation between Brussels and Ankara on EU membership. I know it's going very slowly. But nevertheless, I think it's important to keep Türkiye as close to us as possible," said Pahor.
He also hailed Türkiye for its "excellent job" in mediating between Russia and Ukraine as the war continues in its sixth month.
"I think we should be thankful to your government and the president that they are so strong in getting some results here, which are not important just for Europe but also for third countries," he added.
On July 22, Türkiye, the United Nations, Russia, and Ukraine signed a deal in Istanbul to reopen three Ukrainian ports – Odessa, Chernomorsk and Yuzhny – for grain exports.
The historic deal, brokered by Türkiye and the United Nations, has unblocked exports of grain stuck in Ukrainian ports since the beginning of the war.
Pahor said that he is in favor of "excellent relations" between Brussels and Ankara. "Your country is important. Geopolitically is extremely important. Thank God it is a member of NATO. I think this is very, this is very important."
He also said that the three-way memorandum that was signed between Türkiye, Sweden and Finland during NATO's Madrid summit in June for the two Nordic countries' accession to the alliance is extremely important for the alliance's future.
"I wouldn't underestimate the role of Türkiye, I think nobody is underestimating the role of Türkiye. There is a debate going on on democracy or rule of law, free media and all that stuff. But this is not just the debate between Türkiye and the EU, it's also a debate within the EU."
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Wednesday hailed the strategic partnership between Türkiye and Slovenia which was established in 2011.
"I believe that our solidarity, which has developed on the basis of friendship, alliance and strategic partnership, will become stronger in every field, including Türkiye's accession process to the European Union," Erdoğan said at a news conference with Pahor in the capital Ankara.
Erdoğan welcomed Pahor at the Presidential Complex with an official ceremony. During the closed-door meeting, the leaders discussed bilateral relations, Türkiye's EU membership process, and regional and international issues.
"Friendly relations and cooperation between Türkiye and Slovenia make great contributions to regional peace and stability," Erdoğan said.
During the talks, the Turkish president said the leaders expressed their satisfaction with the development of bilateral cooperation in almost every field, especially in economy, trade, industry, science, technology and transportation.
He added that Ankara and Ljubljana have the potential to increase cooperation in the areas of economy and trade. "As NATO allies, Türkiye and Slovenia have common steps to take, especially in the area of defense."
For his part, Pahor said a vast majority of Slovenian people evaluate cooperation with Türkiye "positively."
Pahor praised Türkiye's mediation role between Russia and Ukraine to ease tensions in the region.
"If this war lasts longer than expected, tensions may descend south to the Western Balkans," he added.
Ahead of the joint conference, Türkiye and Slovenia signed a cooperation deal in the area of science and technology.
Pahor said that he has been trying for his colleagues in the EU and NATO to pay attention to the Western Balkans.
"There is a long tradition of problems even before the war. But with the war, there is another problem, and that is that some countries there are under direct pressure from Russia," the Slovenian president asserted.
Serbia, for which the EU membership process continues, is under great pressure on whether to implement the sanctions of the Western bloc and the EU, he claimed.
Pahor said the EU accession processes of the Western Balkan countries should be accelerated.
"The right answer to this problem of consequences of the war (in Ukraine) is to speed the process of enlargement of the European Union and NATO to the Western Balkans countries," he defended.
"In this case, I think every country, also Serbia, will have to answer the question of where certain countries would like to be. And I hope so very much that every country including Serbia, at the end of the day, will be on the side of the West," he added.
He also pointed out the recent tensions between Kosovo and Serbia, which escalated in late July ahead of Pristina's planned implementation of a new law mandating that everyone, including Serbs living in Kosovo, have a Kosovar ID card and license plate.
Pahor said these problems can only be solved in the long term by accelerating the enlargement process.
The Slovenian leader said Bosnia-Herzegovina should be the next country to be invited to NATO membership.
"I think, if Bosnia would be one day in NATO, that would, very importantly, change the dynamic of events in Western Balkans," he said.
Pahor said that he has been working to grant EU candidate status to Bosnia-Herzegovina before the end of 2022, without any preconditions. He also emphasized the importance of North Macedonia and Albania's continuing membership bids in the EU.
The Slovenian president said that the Western Balkans hold some opportunities as well as problems.
"And I would like to say how important it is what the EU and NATO will do there. If they will wait and wait and wait for developments, well, the Western Balkans countries will be exposed to Russia and this could be the problem."
