CHALKIDIKI - Prime Minister Costas Simitis of European Union (EU) Term President Greece said on Saturday that target of their meeting with five Balkan countries was to give the message to these countries that they could become a member of the EU one day if they fulfilled the EU criteria.
Holding a press conference following the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Chalkidiki, Greece, Simitis said that they were in favor of EU membership of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia-Montenegro and Albania in the future.
Noting that they had decided to make a financial aid more than 200 million euro for development of the region, Simitis reiterated that they wanted to see these countries in the EU family.
Meanwhile, EU Foreign and Security Chief Javier Solana noted that Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia-Montenegro had decided to set up dialogue in a short period of time to resolve their problems.
Leaders of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia-Montenegro and Albania expressed their pleasure with the EU's desire to see them among the members.
They stressed that their countries were determined to fulfill necessary criteria for the EU membership.
Together with other leaders, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Mount Athos, the center of Eastern Orthodox Monasticism.
Later, Erdogan will proceed to Salonica to visit the house in which Mustafa Kemal Ataturk was born.
(UK-MS) 21.06.2003