Brussels, 05/01/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 5 January, diplomatic sources indicated that Greece wanted to join that US Visa Waiver Program (VWP) very soon. “At this stage, all formalities have been concluded and there is no remaining doubt regarding Greece's entry into the VWP. The ball is now in the Americans' court”, stated the same Greek diplomatic source. He added that “we expect the conclusion of an agreement very soon, perhaps at the end of January or beginning of February, during the possible visit of the Greek prime minister to the US”. Although Greek participation in the VWP is still on the agenda, the date of its joining has still not been decided, explained one official US source. This is mainly due to the very busy agenda of the US Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, who has to deal with the repercussions of the attempted attack on the Amsterdam-Detroit flight on 25 December. Five countries have still not been included in the VWP: Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania and Poland (EUROPE 10002). The last three countries are very much behind, given the high rate of visa refusals applied by the US (in 2009: 26.3 % for Bulgaria, 17.8 % for Romania and 13.5 % for Poland). These levels are above the required 3% (one of the conditions that must be fulfilled if a country wants to join the VWP). The island of Cyprus, which has a visa refusal rate of 1.4 %, could be the next country to join the VWP after Greece, once Nicosia has begun producing biometric passports. (B.C./transl.fl)