The United States Department of State has recognized this Friday the legitimacy of the "newly confirmed" Executive of Slovenia, headed by the ultraconservative leader Janez Jansa, and has underlined its intention to deepen the bilateral relationship and cooperate more closely in areas such as security and energy, among others.
"We congratulate Prime Minister Janez Jansa and the newly confirmed Government of Slovenia. The United States looks forward to close cooperation to advance our shared priorities, including defense, energy resilience, regional stability, and mutual prosperity," stated Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a brief statement shared on the Department's website.
Washington's message comes two weeks after the leader of the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) was sworn in again as prime minister, obtaining his fourth term to head the Government after a vote in the Slovenian National Assembly.
This appointment came after a close result in the legislative elections of last March 22, in which there was a technical tie between the Freedom Movement (GS, for its Slovenian acronym) and the SDS. The GS obtained 29 seats, while Jansa's party fell just one seat short of matching that of the then interim prime minister, Robert Golob.
The US Administration's response to the new Slovenian Executive coincides, moreover, with the announcement made this Thursday by the Israeli Foreign Minister, Gideon Saar, who announced that Israel will open its first embassy in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, following the election of Janez Jansa as prime minister of the country.