In his address, Tuerk pointed out that numerous rulings of the ICJ were milestones in the development of the international community.

He also touched on Slovenia's experience in the solving of the sea and land border dispute with Croatia that is to be resolved by an arbitration tribunal, the president's office said in a press release.

The press release did not say however whether Tuerk and Owada discussed arbiter appointments. As ICJ president, Owada will choose three of the five arbiters that will determine the border between Slovenia and Croatia if the two countries fail to agree on them.

After each country puts forward one candidate, they will need to pick the remaining three from a list of international law experts compiled by the European Commission together.

The countries will have 15 days after Croatia signs its accession treaty with the EU on 9 December to do this.

Earlier the president met with a group of Dutch of Slovenian descent, members of a committee that was promoting the recognition of Slovenia as an independent country back in the early 1990s, and decorated them with the Order of Merit for their contribution to informing the Dutch about Slovenia's efforts for international recognition.

The president had started his trip to the Netherlands with a business conference in Rotterdam on Monday that was attended by some 40 Slovenian and 80 Dutch business representatives. He also travelled to the Hague, where he was received by the Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands.