In Luxembourg, Minister for Foreign and European Affairs Evarist Bartolo held talks with his Austrian and Irish colleagues about the three countries’ neutrality and their commitment to strengthening their peace diplomacy.
During separate bilateral meetings with Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg and Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney, Minister Bartolo reiterated Malta’s commitment towards its constitutional neutrality, which continues to be relevant in such a zone of conflict.
The three ministers pledged to cooperate more on neutrality issues and agreed to work together to protect their common position as non-military aligned countries within the European Union.
On Brexit, Ministers Bartolo and Coveney discussed how Ireland and Malta can cooperate to mitigate negative impacts on them, in case of a no-deal Brexit by the end of this year when the United Kingdom is due to withdraw from the European Union. The two countries will intensify their cooperation in the procurement of medicine and trade.
They also discussed the impact of Covid-19 on the two countries’ economies and how they can enable tourism between both countries.
