(SARAJEVO) - Bosnia will sign a key pact for closer ties with the European Union on June 16, the international community's high representative in Bosnia, Miroslav Lajcak, said Friday.

"I can confirm that the Stabilisation and Association Agreement should be signed on June 16," said Lajcak on national radio.

Bosnia had been expected to sign the trade-and-aid agreement -- a stepping stone towards eventual EU membership -- in April, after lawmakers adopted long-disputed police reforms.

But the date had to be pushed back due to technical issues arising from the translation of the document into EU and Bosnian languages, according to local and EU officials.

Lajcak -- a senior Slovak diplomat who oversees implementation of the Dayton accords that ended the 1992-95 war in Bosnia-Herzegovina -- left for Brussels on Friday to brief EU officials on developments in Bosnia.

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