The Armed Forces of Malta is to benefit from more EU funding to tackle irregular immigration in addition to the estimated €30 million it received over the past five years, The Sunday Times has learnt.

Malta was also recently allocated €15 million in EU funds from the External Border Funds programme to strengthen its borders. The funds are over and above the €1 billion from the general EU budget covering 2007-2013.

According to government sources, the majority of the new funds will once again be dedicated to the army to buy more heavy equipment.

The influx of thousands of asylum seekers from sub-Saharan Africa over the past decade has posed a major problem for law enforcement agencies, but army sources said it was, ironically, also a “godsend”.

“The army was never a major priority for the Maltese authorities and during particular periods, particularly in the 1970s and early 1980s, it was merely a recruitment agency to keep unemployment low,” a senior army officer said.

However, the situation has changed in recent years as more immigrants started landing in Malta after fleeing Libya.

Thanks to EU funds, the army had become a priority for the government which was investing heavily in soldiers, he said.

EU officials in Brussels said Malta had been allocated a total of €50 million through the External Borders Fund since 2007.

This is over and above the millions given to the island through other migration-related programmes including the Refugee Fund, the Fund for Integration and the European Return Fund.

“The Commission is committed to help Malta deal better with the illegal immigration problem and we are giving priority to the island when it comes to the allocation of these funds,” the EU official said.

Other countries also being given priority are Italy, Greece and Spain, he said.

The AFM has invested considerably in equipment and assets, including patrol boats and inflatable boats. The EU funds also helped improve the army’s current facilities, including its communications capabilities and aircraft hangars.

The Police Force – also engaged in the fight against irregular immigration – has been allocated some €4 million since 2007 to improve its capabilities, while the Foreign Ministry also benefitted from another €4 million to improve its visa and passport systems in many overseas embassies in an effort to ensure that false documentation, like passports and visas, are easily detected.