Slovenian Parliament Speaker France Cukjati and his visiting Norwegian counterpart Thorbjorn Jagland agreed on Thursday that the two countries held similar views on Western Balkans, Middle East and energy policy.
Speaking to the press after the meeting, Jagland said Norway was almost an EU member as it was part of the European Economic Area (EEA), a member of the Schengen no-border zone and participated in the EU's security and defence policy.
Expressing his hope that Norway would in the future become a member of the EU, Jagland said that a third referendum on the issue was unlikely.
Norwegians decided on their membership in the bloc at the 1972 and 1994 referenda, which failed because of disagreements over the common fisheries policy. The Norwegians are moreover satisfied with the existing level of cooperation between Norway and the EU, he added.
Jagland said that the countries were interested in maintaining good relations with the US and in solving the issue of Kosovo.
Cukjati was the first Slovenian parliament speaker to visit Norway. He visited the Scandinavian country last June.
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