One general impression most Maltese have of the island's relations with Libya is that, although these are always held to be excellent, they rarely, if ever, lead to quick solutions to problems that generally hit Malta more than that country. In other words, Libya does not seem over-enthusiastic in matching its friendship declarations with deeds that can help clear difficulties. Two sticking problems are the flow of illegal immigrants and a dispute over offshore oil exploration rights. The dispute over oil exploration has now been on the agenda for years on end and the matter over illegal immigration is pressing very hard.

An attempt at speeding up efforts for solutions to these problems was made when President Eddie Fenech Adami visited Tripoli this week. After his first meeting with Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, Dr Fenech Adami was quoted saying that "there is the political will to reach an agreement on how to proceed ..." over oil exploration. But this is exactly what the Foreign Minister, Tonio Borg, said on his return from a visit to that country in April this year. At least, a tentative date seems to have been set for a definitive solution to be reached by October, which is only three months away. Only time will tell if the mixed commission studying the possibility of a joint venture between the two countries would be in a position to conclude the talks or not. The government is hoping to have a political decision by that time.

A "political decision" has been in the pipeline since February 2007 when Libya first expressed an interest in cooperating with Malta in offshore oil exploration. Rather than taking the issue to the International Court of Justice, as both countries did when Malta first awarded concessions on the Medina Bank, Malta and Libya are now thinking of the possibility of striking a joint venture deal. This would naturally be a step forward, as referring disputes to the international court takes time. However, one problem in the work being done by Malta and Libya in this connection is that Italy is also known to be claiming an interest in an area disputed by both Malta and Libya.

This point raises a matter that is most irksome. Why is the government so sparing in its information about developments in offshore oil exploration? What, exactly, is the situation with Libya, Tunisia and Italy over exploration rights? Should not the country be adequately informed? Take the President's visit to Tripoli, for example; should not the public have been told of the government's expectations? What concessions have been granted so far in waters disputed by Libya? Or take the Prime Minister's talks with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi recently. Surely it is too superficial to just simply state that both pledged to solve the existing impasse on oil exploration. What exactly is being done to solve the impasse? What are the two countries' claims? What stage have the talks reached? What happened to the joint exploration agreement with Tunisia? At the time this was signed it was described as a major breakthrough, resolving an issue that had been pending for 35 years.

The time is well overdue for a full account to be given of Malta's offshore oil exploration efforts.