Drnovsek explained in an interview he gave for the Ljubljana-based Dnevnik daily on Saturday that these two things should not be linked and that Slovenia should not obstruct Croatia on its road towards the European bloc.
"The Slovene government has been a firm ally of Croatia regarding the opening of Croatia's (accession) negotiations with the EU. On the other hand, the rising conflict marked bilateral relations for several weeks and it almost seem that we would open fire at each other," Drnovsek said commenting on the relations between Zagreb and Ljubljana in 2005.
He added that good bilateral relations were equally important for Ljubljana and Zagreb because of good neighbourly relations and strong economic connections.