The European Commission has welcomed the announcement that Maltese citizens no longer require a visa to visit the US as of tomorrow.

Brussels said the agreement was concluded just a few days after the fruitful EU/US justice and home affairs troika ministerial meeting in Washington on December 12.

The Commission used this announcement to lobby for more concessions to other EU member states that are still expecting the US to lift visa restrictions on their citizens.

The Commission said it looked forward to the admission of the remaining five member states - Greece, Poland, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Romania - to the visa-waiver programme as soon as possible.

"I am very happy the Maltese deal has been secured before the end of the year," Commission vice president Jacques Barrot said.

"It is a significant step further on the path to full visa-free reciprocity between the EU and the US. The close ties between the two countries will be further strengthened... I congratulate the US authorities for this decision," he said.

At the same time, Mr Barrot said the EU Executive will continue to work with the US authorities to secure the same treatment for all European citizens.

All the new EU member states, acceded in 2004, have been insisting with the US to lift the visa requirement for the past years. However, despite various promises, progress on this issue had been slow, particularly due to security concerns raised by the US Congress.

However, at the end of the Bush Administration, steps were taken to close this ongoing issue with the EU.

Malta's announcement follows a decision by the US last month to admit six new member states to the visa-waiver programme. The US is now expected to allow the five remaining member states to benefit from this reciprocity in the coming weeks. However, an announcement still has to be made.

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