"The Republic of Slovenia is surprised at the protest of the Republic of Croatia over the Slovene bill on the protective ecological zone and the continental shelf, and contests the allegations made in (Croatia's) note of 26 August," Slovenia said in a diplomatic note.
The diplomatic note was delivered by the State Secretary at the Slovene Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bozo Cerar, during a meeting with Croatian Charge d'Affaires Ana Pejkovic.
During the talks, the Slovene official "resolutely rejected the allegations that the bill on the protective ecological zone and the continental shelf will have no legal effect" and explained that the bill was based on the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and that it was in conformity with the agreements on the delimitation of the continental shelves between Italy and the now defunct Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY), according to a statement from the Slovene Foreign Ministry.
The statement noted that Slovenia was a legal successor to the treaties between Italy and the SFRY, and that the Slovene Maritime Code provided for the creation of maritime zones.
Cerar also pointed out that "it is not at all possible to interpret the bill as a territorial claim, as we have been accused of by Croatia" because the bill is in conformity with Slovene laws and international treaties.
Cerar dismissed Croatia's assertion that Slovenia does not have territorial access to the high seas, stressing that Slovenia had that right within the SFRY.