Malta bid to assist in Gaza Strip projects

Malta has made a proposal at the EU to transfer the technology it has developed in water desalination to the Gaza Strip and even to assist in the construction of a sea port.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi told foreign and Maltese reporters at the National Press Club in Washington yesterday that tension was unlikely to subside as long as the region did not have a reliable water supply. He said: "With the appropriate international partnership, Malta would be pleased to transfer the technology to a region like Gaza as well as assisting further technological development to suit the specific environment".

The Prime Minister said Malta had put the proposal forward at EU level and it would again raise the issue at the Barcelona process due to take place next month.

"With respect to Gaza, there are two areas where progress can really make a difference and where Malta can offer is expertise: one of them is the provision of drinking water and the other is the provision of a sea port where we can provide our expertise."

Dr Gonzi said that over the years Malta had acquired considerable experience in water desalination and even developed the technology itself.

Turning to Turkey's relations with the EU, which was also raised in his meeting yesterday with US President George Bush, the Prime Minister said the latest information he had was that progress had been made and that negotiations would start relatively soon.

"Malta has a very clear position on Turkey: We are in favour of negotiations starting and if Turkey achieves the basic qualifications then the EU should be open to Turkey's membership.

"We believe Turkey's membership would be a step forward for the stability of the Mediterranean region. We also believe Turkey could be an interlocutor between Europe and the Arab countries."

However, he said it was a sine qua non that Turkey recognises Cyprus as a sovereign nation.

The Prime Minister said there was no reason why negotiations should not start with Croatia in the short term.