Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, conveyed the Queen's best wishes to Malta on its fiftieth anniversary of Independence today and also said that his wife Catherine - who was to have been the guest of honour at the festivities - looked forward to being able to visit Malta in the future.

"She was looking forward to coming here enormously, and I know she hopes very much that she will be able to visit in the future," Prince William told guests at a reception in the Upper Barrakka hosted by the Prime Minister.

He thanked Malta for the warm welcome given to him and said the Duchess had asked him to say she was very sorry she is that she couldn't be the one to pass on The Queen's greetings. He then conveyed the following message from the Queen:

"Prince Philip and I send our congratulations to the President, the Prime Minister, and the people of Malta, on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of Independence.

We have such fond memories of your country at different stages of our lives, first as a young married couple when we lived in Malta, and then again when we returned at the time of our 60th wedding anniversary in 2007.

Over the years we have seen Malta grow and develop into the confident and proud nation we see today. Next year you will showcase your country as hosts of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

Prince Philip and I are grateful to the people of Malta for always making us, and our family, feel so welcome.

I send my warmest good wishes to you for your celebrations this week, and for the continued success and prosperity of Malta in the future."

PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS

President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca conveyed her best wishes to the Queen and the Duchess and invited Prince William to visit Malta again, with all his family in the near future.

She spoke on the links between Malta and the UK and their continued role within the Commonwealth, whose summit Malta will cost next year.

"We look forward to contributing effectively in making the necessary changes and reforms to make this most important organization relevant to today’s’ challenges. The commonwealth is an ideal platform for today’s turbulent realities by bringing its’ 53 nations together in dialogue. The Commonwealth can truly be a source of motivation to contribute effectively to the much needed stability on the globe," the President said. 

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said he was rarely as proud as today, in witnessing one people, united not only in celebrating past accomplishments, but, most importantly, united in the resolve to achieve even greater success for our homeland in the future.

"Malta's first fifty years of independence have been a huge success and we are looking forward to continue transforming this country," he said.

"Royal Highness, a special word of thanks to you today. Fifty years ago, your grandfather was here to witness this historic achievement. Today, your presence goes to show that independence, a much talked-about term these days, is not about bitter feuds and rivalries, but rather a sense of homecoming, where today Malta and the United Kingdom, albeit different in size, stand together as equals, as friends, in the international family of nations." 

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.