BOSNIA TO BECOME EU CANDIDATE BY 2010

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 13,2008) - The Slovenian President Danilo Turk TODAY pledged his country’s support to Bosnia’s bid to move closer to the European Union, saying it could become an official candidate nation by 2010.

"We are talking about abolition of visas in a year or so and candidate status for Bosnia in 2010," Turk told reporters after meeting with the Bosnian President Haris Silajdzic.

"In Slovenia, we believe that these are realistic objectives," he added.

"There are too many occasions when there are misperceptions (about Bosnia) on European stage and Slovenia could be helpful in removing these misperceptions," Turk said.

In June, Bosnia signed a Stabilization and Association Agreement with the European Union, seen as the first step towards the full EU membership.

However, disagreements among ruling political parties have stalled the state building process.Stronger central governance is critical to Bosnia’s EU membership prospects.

The Slovenian President Danilo Turk arrived earlier today for a two-day visit to Bosnia, the first visit to Bosnia by a Slovenian president since 2002.
.