The deal was signed in Ljubljana on Thursday by Slovenian Economic Development and Technology Minister Zdravko Počivalšek and Economy Minister of the United Arab Emirates Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansouri.

Počivalšek said on the occasion that volume of goods trade and investment between the two countries was solid, but that there was still lot of room for improvement. Slovenia and the UAE can upgrade their cooperation in construction, housing equipment, food and tourism, he added.

According to the minister, by signing the agreement the two countries have set up the foundation for even better cooperation.

Počivalšek and Al Mansouri also discussed the business environment in Slovenia and investment possibilities on both sides. "I believe that the foundation has been set for advanced cooperation in the fields of trade and foreign direct investment," Počivalšek said.

Al Mansouri agreed that Slovenia and the UAE have good relations. He sees opportunities for enhanced cooperation in environmental protection, innovation, renewable energy sources and food industry.

"Since we are a desert country, we depend on food imports, we import as much as 85% of our food, which is why we decided to cooperate with partner countries around the world in agriculture and food industry," he added.

According to Al Mansouri, the two countries could also cooperate in development of innovative products, which could be marketed also outside Europe.

"The United Arab Emirates can boast a strong investment fund, and in the past we made a lot of investments in the nearby countries, such as Serbia and Montenegro," he said.

Investments by the UAE in Slovenia have been modest so far because the country was little known, Al Mansouri admitted. "The country offers great potential which we could utilise," he added.

The two countries also signed an agreement on cooperation in civil aviation, which Al Mansouri believes will help boost bilateral cooperation. He noted that the UAE had four major airlines, including giants Emirates and Etihad.