LJUBLJANA, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Visiting British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has assured his host, Slovenian Foreign Minister Karl Erjavec that Britain is interested in a strong EU and, likewise, a strong Slovenia within the bloc, local media reported on Wednesday.
Both ministers confirmed their wishes to deepen the ties between their countries after Brexit, the Slovenian Press Agency (STA) reported.
The pair hailed the 25th anniversary of relations between the nations, an event that was marked Wednesday night with a special reception given here by the British embassy.
On bilateral relations, the STA report quoted the figures given by Erjavec that the trade between the two countries had increased by 18 percent in the past two years and both called for cooperation to be strengthened further in the future.
Johnson also spoke of critical areas of political cooperation, namely, extremism and terrorism, saying "we are very conscious of the role that Slovenia has had to play at the front of the challenge that we all face as Europeans in migration...the challenge we face working together to combat extremism and terrorism."
The British foreign secretary, meanwhile, reiterated that Britain would definitely trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty and thereby leave the EU, but it would not leave Europe.
"We don't want Europe in any way to get weaker or to break up. On the contrary, we want to be supportive...We believe in a strong UK, a strong EU and a strong Slovenia within the EU," Johnson said.
Johnson also met Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar and President Borut Pahor, the STA reported.
