In less than two weeks, Slovenia will reach another milestone in its journey from the wreckage of socialist Yugoslavia to the international mainstream when it assumes the rotating presidency of the European Union.

For the small Alpine republic of 2m people that did not even exist as an independent state 20 years ago, it will be quite an achievement. Slovenia is the first of the EU’s “class of 2004” of new members from formerly communist central and eastern Europe to take charge of running the political machinery of the 27-state bloc.