Nationalist MP Mario de Marco yesterday underlined the role which Malta as an EU country could play in the development of the Euro-Mediterranean relations.

Speaking in Parliament during the budget debate on foreign affairs, Dr de Marco said it was significant that the views of the government and the opposition on foreign affairs had converged. They agreed that Malta as an EU country should follow a Euro-Mediterranean policy that recognised the geo-political importance of Malta in the heart of the Mediterranean.

In the context of the linkage between security in Europe and the Mediterranean, it was important that the EU continued to adopt a proactive policy for the Mediterranean. Failure to do so would affect attempts to strengthen the Euro-Med Partnership and there could be a negative impact on the European Neighbourhood Policy.

The list of security issues in the Euro-Mediterranean zone was long and varied, including illegal migration, terrorism, religious intollerence and disregard for human rights.

The Euro-Mediterranean Partnership had, since 1995, achieved modest results, but it had still managed to improve political, economic and cultural relations between European and north African countries.

More recently the European Neighbourhood Policy had offered north African countries access to European markets.

A study of the Euro-Med Partnership, however, showed shortcomings in that the process was more focused on meetings than tangible projects. The financial instruments offered so far were not as much as expected. Eastern European countries had received much more aid to transform their economies following the end of the Cold War.

Dr de Marco said greater consideration needed to be given to the creation of a Euro-Mediterranean Development Bank, since economic and job creation in the Mediterraean could only come from investment. The proposed development bank could be modelled on the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, or indeed, be its offshoot.

Greater attention also needed to be focused on cooperation in migration control management, environmental management and economic development in the Mediterranean.

Arab countries needed to be urged to take a more direct role in controlled illegal migration. A suggestion had been made to create a Euro-Mediterranean Coastguard which would involve itself not only in illegal migration, but also safety at sea, pollution control and the deterrence of drug and arms shipments.

The EU needed to reach agreements with Arab countries for the repatriation of migrants while also offering these countries technical and financial aid for the control of their borders and coasts. The EU, however, should also help these countries in their economic and democratic development since many of the migrants were seeking to escape political and economic problems.

Dr de Marco referred to the recent proposal by French President Nicolas Sarkozy for the creation of a Mediterranean Union. This concept, he said, was born out of the view that the Barcelona Process had failed to bring both sides of the Mediterranean closer, mostly because of the failure of the Middle East peace process.

He felt the Sarkozy proposal should be welcomed by Malta. It would not only draw fresh attention to the Mediterranean, but it parallelled other proposals made in the past by Malta itself. The structure of the proposed Mediterranean Union was still fluid. Malta should build on the proposals made in 1992 for the setting up of a forum on the lines of the Council of Europe. At the time it was suggested that this Council of the Mediterranean should consist of a committee of ministers and a parliamentary assembly. Of course, the situation had changed in that a Mediterranean Assembly had since been set up and its secretariat was based in Malta.

Dr de Marco said Malta should also promote a culture of research and development in the Euro-Mediterranean. Europe could help improve living conditions in the Mediterranean through closer cooperation in research, development and innovation, notably in renewable energy.

The Euro-Med Initiative for Technology and Innovation taken by Malta was already yielding fruit through joint ventures and pointed the way for further progress in this area.

Malta could also assist the Euro-Med Partnership by promoting education and training, which were key to economic growth. Significantly more funds in the European Neighbourhood Policy needed to be directed to this area. There needed to be more student exchanged between European and Mediterranean countries and European research institutes should twin with other organisations in the south.

Malta had a valuable tool in the Mediterranean Academy for Diplomatic Studies which in the past 17 years had trained 400 students. With the Maltese Foreign Ministry and the European Commission it had also coordinated Euro-Mediterranean Information and Training Seminars which had drawn 600 diplomats. This model could be adopted for new areas such as justice and home affairs.

The Nationalist MP called for a more intense dialogue between the Mediterranean countries on climate change, an area in which Malta had already assumed a leadership role in the United Nations.

Concluding, Dr de Marco said the regional element of the Maltese embassy in Saudi Arabia needed to be strengthened. The embassy should not concentrate solely on that kingdom but also seek opportunities for Malta in Dubai, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman, among others.

Malta should also consider opening an embassy in Canada. Alternatively it could give a stronger role to its consulates or strengthen the role of the embassy in Washington.

He asked what progress had been made in talks with the United States on a double taxation avoidance agreement and on the visa waiver.

Malta should also consider establishing an embassy in South Africa as a means to improving links with the African continent.

He welcomed the recently concluded Lisbon Treaty and the sixth seat granted to Malta in the European Parliament and said Malta's House of Representatives should establish its representative office in the European Parliament.

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