New EU and NATO member Slovenia can serve as a "bridge" for other ex-Yugoslav republics wanting to join the Western blocs, regional leaders said Sunday.

"Slovenia can serve as a bridge between former Yugoslav republics and the EU and NATO," Slovenia's President Janez Drnovsek said, quoted by the HINA news agency.

Croatian counterpart Stipe Mesic said Slovenia could serve as a "lobbyist" at the EU for other countries in the region.

The two presidents made their comments after talks with presidents Sulejman Tihic of Bosnia and Filip Vujanovic of Montenegro on the sidelines of a workshop on promoting democracy in ex-Yugoslav republics held on the Adriatic island of Brijuni.

The four presidents also discussed cooperation between their countries aimed notably at stabilising the volatile Balkans region and boosting economic ties.

Slovenia joined NATO in early April and the EU on May 1 along with nine other countries, including seven former Communist states.

Among the other former Yugoslav republics, Croatia is furthest along the path towards EU membership, hoping to get official EU candidate status next month.

Bosnia and Serbia-Montengro are waiting to kick off negotiations on a stabilisation and association agreement with the EU, seen as the first steps towards integration into the bloc. Macedonia signed the stabilisation agreement in 2001.

Communist Yugoslavia, formed after World War II, had six republics -- Bosnia-Hercegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia.

The federation fell apart in a series of independence wars in the 1990s.