{"id":56929,"date":"2026-04-17T15:29:32","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T14:29:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/?p=56929"},"modified":"2026-04-17T15:29:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T14:29:32","slug":"deputy-prime-minister-ian-borg-holds-bilateral-talks-with-french-minister-for-europe-and-foreign-affairs-jean-noel-barrot-in-paris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/17\/deputy-prime-minister-ian-borg-holds-bilateral-talks-with-french-minister-for-europe-and-foreign-affairs-jean-noel-barrot-in-paris\/","title":{"rendered":"Deputy Prime Minister Ian Borg holds bilateral talks with French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot in Paris"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Ian Borg, held a bilateral meeting with the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of the French Republic, Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot, in Paris.<\/p>\n<p>The two sides reaffirmed the strong and longstanding relationship between Malta and France, underlining the mutual respect that characterises ties between the two countries and their shared commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation within the European Union and across multilateral fora.<\/p>\n<p>Discussions also focused on key regional and global developments, including Russia\u2019s war of aggression in Ukraine, the Middle East and the situation in Libya. Malta reiterated its consistent call for de-escalation and just and lasting peace while emphasising its own constitutional neutrality.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMalta and France enjoy a relationship built on trust, mutual respect, and a shared commitment to multilateralism. In today\u2019s complex geopolitical environment, continued dialogue is essential to advancing peace, stability, and prosperity,\u201d Dr Borg said.<\/p>\n<p>The two ministers also exchanged views on recent developments across Europe, including in the election result in Hungary, underlining the importance of democratic stability and continued engagement within the European framework.<\/p>\n<p>European priorities including on energy and European sovereignty, also featured prominently, with both sides stressing the importance of unity and effective cooperation within the EU.<\/p>\n<p>Both sides also discussed cooperation at the multilateral level, including within the United Nations.<\/p>\n<p>Dr Borg also highlighted Malta\u2019s role as one of the world\u2019s largest maritime registries, with discussions addressing maritime security, sanctions implementation, and the need to balance enforcement with international obligations relating to safety at sea and environmental protection.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI outlined Malta\u2019s position on maritime matters, which are of strategic importance to our country. As one of the world\u2019s largest maritime registries, it is essential that international frameworks remain effective while ensuring legal certainty and allowing operators to fulfil their obligations,\u201d Dr Borg added.<\/p>\n<p><em>Photo (ODPM-MFT)<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"pvc_stats_56929\" class=\"pvc_stats all  \" data-element-id=\"56929\" style=\"\"><i class=\"pvc-stats-icon medium\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.0\" viewBox=\"0 0 502 315\" preserveAspectRatio=\"xMidYMid meet\"><g transform=\"translate(0,332) scale(0.1,-0.1)\" fill=\"\" stroke=\"none\"><path d=\"M2394 3279 l-29 -30 -3 -207 c-2 -182 0 -211 15 -242 39 -76 157 -76 196 0 15 31 17 60 15 243 l-3 209 -33 29 c-26 23 -41 29 -80 29 -41 0 -53 -5 -78 -31z\"\/><path d=\"M3085 3251 c-45 -19 -58 -50 -96 -229 -47 -217 -49 -260 -13 -295 52 -53 146 -42 177 20 16 31 87 366 87 410 0 70 -86 122 -155 94z\"\/><path d=\"M1751 3234 c-13 -9 -29 -31 -37 -50 -12 -29 -10 -49 21 -204 19 -94 39 -189 45 -210 14 -50 54 -80 110 -80 34 0 48 6 76 34 21 21 34 44 34 59 0 14 -18 113 -40 219 -37 178 -43 195 -70 221 -36 32 -101 37 -139 11z\"\/><path d=\"M1163 3073 c-36 -7 -73 -59 -73 -102 0 -56 133 -378 171 -413 34 -32 83 -37 129 -13 70 36 67 87 -16 290 -86 209 -89 214 -129 231 -35 14 -42 15 -82 7z\"\/><path d=\"M3689 3066 c-15 -9 -33 -30 -42 -48 -48 -103 -147 -355 -147 -375 0 -98 131 -148 192 -74 13 15 57 108 97 206 80 196 84 226 37 273 -30 30 -99 39 -137 18z\"\/><path d=\"M583 2784 c-38 -19 -67 -74 -58 -113 9 -42 211 -354 242 -373 16 -10 45 -18 66 -18 51 0 107 52 107 100 0 39 -1 41 -124 234 -80 126 -108 162 -133 173 -41 17 -61 16 -100 -3z\"\/><path d=\"M4250 2784 c-14 -9 -74 -91 -133 -183 -95 -150 -107 -173 -107 -213 0 -55 33 -94 87 -104 67 -13 90 8 211 198 130 202 137 225 78 284 -27 27 -42 34 -72 34 -22 0 -50 -8 -64 -16z\"\/><path d=\"M2275 2693 c-553 -48 -1095 -270 -1585 -649 -135 -104 -459 -423 -483 -476 -23 -49 -22 -139 2 -186 73 -142 361 -457 571 -626 285 -228 642 -407 990 -497 242 -63 336 -73 660 -74 310 0 370 5 595 52 535 111 1045 392 1455 803 122 121 250 273 275 326 19 41 19 137 0 174 -41 79 -309 363 -465 492 -447 370 -946 591 -1479 653 -113 14 -422 18 -536 8z m395 -428 c171 -34 330 -124 456 -258 112 -119 167 -219 211 -378 27 -96 24 -300 -5 -401 -72 -255 -236 -447 -474 -557 -132 -62 -201 -76 -368 -76 -167 0 -236 14 -368 76 -213 98 -373 271 -451 485 -162 444 86 934 547 1084 153 49 292 57 452 25z m909 -232 c222 -123 408 -262 593 -441 76 -74 138 -139 138 -144 0 -16 -233 -242 -330 -319 -155 -123 -309 -223 -461 -299 l-81 -41 32 46 c18 26 49 83 70 128 143 306 141 649 -6 957 -25 52 -61 116 -79 142 l-34 47 45 -20 c26 -10 76 -36 113 -56z m-2057 25 c-40 -58 -105 -190 -130 -263 -110 -324 -59 -707 132 -981 25 -35 42 -64 37 -64 -19 0 -241 119 -326 174 -188 122 -406 314 -532 468 l-58 71 108 103 c185 178 428 349 672 473 66 33 121 60 123 61 2 0 -10 -19 -26 -42z\"\/><path d=\"M2375 1950 c-198 -44 -350 -190 -395 -379 -18 -76 -8 -221 19 -290 114 -284 457 -406 731 -260 98 52 188 154 231 260 27 69 37 214 19 290 -38 163 -166 304 -326 360 -67 23 -215 33 -279 19z\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/i> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"Loading\" src=\"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/page-views-count\/ajax-loader-2x.gif\" border=0 \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Ian Borg, held a bilateral meeting with the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of the French Republic, Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot, in Paris. The two sides reaffirmed the strong and longstanding relationship between Malta and France, underlining the mutual respect that characterises ties between the two [&hellip;]<\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"pvc_stats_56929\" class=\"pvc_stats all  \" data-element-id=\"56929\" style=\"\"><i class=\"pvc-stats-icon medium\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.0\" viewBox=\"0 0 502 315\" preserveAspectRatio=\"xMidYMid meet\"><g transform=\"translate(0,332) scale(0.1,-0.1)\" fill=\"\" stroke=\"none\"><path d=\"M2394 3279 l-29 -30 -3 -207 c-2 -182 0 -211 15 -242 39 -76 157 -76 196 0 15 31 17 60 15 243 l-3 209 -33 29 c-26 23 -41 29 -80 29 -41 0 -53 -5 -78 -31z\"\/><path d=\"M3085 3251 c-45 -19 -58 -50 -96 -229 -47 -217 -49 -260 -13 -295 52 -53 146 -42 177 20 16 31 87 366 87 410 0 70 -86 122 -155 94z\"\/><path d=\"M1751 3234 c-13 -9 -29 -31 -37 -50 -12 -29 -10 -49 21 -204 19 -94 39 -189 45 -210 14 -50 54 -80 110 -80 34 0 48 6 76 34 21 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Lynch","author_link":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/author\/bernardlynch\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Ian Borg, held a bilateral meeting with the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of the French Republic, Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot, in Paris. The two sides reaffirmed the strong and longstanding relationship between Malta and France, underlining the mutual respect that characterises ties between the two&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56929"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56931,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56929\/revisions\/56931"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}