Malta and Australia shared common goals and views on relations with the Commonwealth and the United Nations, President Eddie Fenech Adami said yesterday.

"We look forward to continue to collaborate and work together to promote peace, stability and economic development in a globalised world," he said during a state luncheon hosted by the Governor General of Australia Quentin Bryce.

Dr Fenech Adami said the adoption of the European Union-Australia Partnership Framework Agreement opened a new avenue for joint initiatives.

Relations between the two countries pre-dated the establishment of diplomatic relations by well over a century. The Maltese first heard of the "new, far-away continent and the attractive prospects it offered" around 170 years ago.

"Over the years, we consolidated our bilateral relations based on mutual respect, understanding and cooperation," the President said, adding that the two countries signed agreements on social security, health services, double taxation and air services.

He also referred to the fires that ravaged large parts of Victoria and claimed the lives of many people.

Dr Fenech Adami met a group of members of the Australia Federal Parliament and spoke about the success of the Maltese in Australia. He expressed satisfaction at the resurgence in the learning of the Maltese language among the Maltese community.

Dr Fenech Adami laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the National War Memorial in Canberra.

Melbourne-based singer and songwriter of Maltese descent, Joseph Portelli, known as Jay P, performed the title track, 1565, from his debut album 1565 Patiently Waiting.