Slovenian President Danilo Turk stated on Wednesday that his country is willing to back Serbia's European integration but that a country can obtain EU membership only after it has met all the criteria set by the European Commission (EC).

In a statement for Tanjug on the margins of the Vienna Economic Forum, Turk said that it is difficult to assess at this point whether Serbia would get the date of the initiation of accession talks with the EU in addition to the EU candidate status, because it all depends on the EC report.

It all depends on the EC report and assessment as to whether Serbia has met all the criteria, Turk said and recalled that EU candidacy is granted after a country manages to meet a wide range of criteria, and it is necessary to fulfil all of the requirements and not just one of them.

He commended Serbian authorities on arresting ICTY indictee Ratko Mladic, and added that other criteria also need to be fulfilled. Turk underscored that judiciary reform and fight against corruption are the standard priority topics in the discussion on potential new EU members. According to him, Slovenia supports Serbia's European integration.

Slovenia believes that Serbia is capable of meeting all the necessary criteria on its own, Turk said and added that if Serbia wants Slovenia's assistance, his country will take tangible steps to this end. He also recalled that Slovenia strongly supports abolishment of visas for Serbian citizens.

It all depends on the way in which Serbia itself would define its priorities, the Slovenian president said and concluded that Slovenia is ready to provide support.