Queen thanks Slovenia for support

The Queen has thanked Slovenia for the support the nation has given to British troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

She spoke while at a state banquet, held in her honour, at the 16th century Brdo Castle near the capital Ljubljana.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are on a two-day state visit to the country at the behest of president Danilo Turk.

It is the first time they have been to Slovenia since its independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991 and entry into the European Union in 2004.

Speaking to an audience of 80 guest, the monarch congratulated Slovenia, one of Europe's youngest countries, on its transformation since independence.

She said: 'This achievement has been all the more striking when we recall that it is only 17 years since you first emerged as an independent European nation."

Source: BBC