At a European Council Summit, held between March 21 and 22 in Brussels, Malta again took a strong position so that the principles of neutrality and the nonalignment we have in the Constitution of our country. The Prime Minister Robert Abela insisted that the Council should take into consideration the specific characteristics of the security and defense policy of each Member State and this was reflected in the conclusions.
The Prime Minister also had a clear message in favor of the neutrality that our country embraces in its Constitution. Dr. Abela told the President of the European Parliament that this institution must also respect the Constitution and the Maltese Parliament. During the European Council, the Prime Minister together with the European Leaders discussed various themes including the latest developments in Ukraine and the Middle East, security and defence, agriculture, migration and growth in the European Union.
The European Council started with a meeting with the Secretary General of the United Nations António Guterres. Here the Prime Minister Robert Abela was one of the Leaders who addressed the Council at its opening. Dr. Abela delivered a strong message in favor of peace and stressed that there should be a collective effort to stop the fighting permanently in Gaza. He referred to the humanitarian realities in Gaza, also pointed out by Guteress earlier, including entire families without food and water and thousands of dead and injured people.
The Prime Minister said that the European Union cannot turn a blind eye to this and while he also stressed that humanitarian aid should continue to be provided, it is crucial that the Council conveys a firm position in favor of the permanent cessation of hostilities in a way immediate. Secretary General Guterres praised the work that Malta is carrying out in the Security Council of the United Nations, with the same work leading to the passing of a resolution pushed by Malta which brought an agreement on the need for humanitarian aid in Gaza.
The Council also discussed the Agriculture sector with Malta reiterating here also a consistent position in favor of support for farmers and that there are no systems that do not give flexibility and disadvantage to the farmers of Member States. Dr. Abela also noted that this is done at the same time in favor of directing practices towards sustainability in the sector. He mentioned how our country continues to give unprecedented help to Maltese and Gozitan farmers. He reiterated that the actions that the Council is proposing to reduce bureaucracy and strengthen the competitiveness of farmers and villagers are steps in the right direction and stressed that the challenges facing the farmers, so that we really have a competitive and resilient sector.
The Council was also updated with the work being done on migration. Here the Prime Minister emphasized that this subject should continue to be given absolute priority in order to reduce the number of irregular arrivals and thus avoid the loss of lives, and increase the rate of return of immigrants that they do not deserve asylum. During the discussion on enlargement, the Council agreed to open negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina for membership in the European Union.
During Friday, the Euro Summit was also convened where the European economic and financial situation was discussed. In his intervention, Prime Minister Robert Abela mentioned how our country took strong decisions to stabilize prices and thus reduce the impact of inflation on citizens and businesses. An initiative that has already begun to leave its mark with the reduction in the inflation rate in February, particularly in terms of food prices. The European Council also commemorated the thirtieth anniversary of the establishment of the European Economic Area.
Photos: OPM
