Washington - The United States is admitting seven new countries to its visa waiver programme after finalizing security arrangements, President George W Bush announced Friday.

Within one month, citizens of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and South Korea, will be able to visit the US for up to 90 days without obtaining a visa.

Bush called it a "new chapter in the relationship between the United States and your nations."

"It is a testament to the strong bonds of friendship that unite our people," he said in a statement from the White House Rose Garden, joined by ambassadors from the seven countries, and six other potential candidates.

The announcement expands the US visa waiver programme to 34 countries.

Six others - Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Malta, Poland and Romania - are on track to join the programme at a later date.

Roger Dow, president of the US Travel Industry Association (TIA), said the announcement would help reverse a "significant decline" in travel to the US since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

In 2007, 2 million fewer people visited the US than in 2000, despite a weak dollar, according to the TIA. (dpa)