Malta is confident that with proper political and economic measures, Greece will soon become an important economic partner in the Mediterranean region again, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said yesterday.

He noted that Greece was showing the “first signs” of economic recovery after it was hard hit by the 2008 economic crises, saying this was good news for the Greek people but also for the rest of Europe.

Dr Muscat was speaking during an official luncheon he hosted at Auberge de Castille for Greek President Karolos Papoulias, who left yesterday afternoon after a two-day State visit on the island, the first by a Greek president.

“Indeed, our confidence in your economic recovery leads us in the direction of enhanced commercial cooperation in the form of joint trade commissions and business-to-business interaction which my government believes is vital to economic stimulus and the creation of new jobs,” Dr Muscat said.

As expected, Dr Muscat raised the irregular immigration issue, a phenomenon both Malta and Greece were trying to address through the European Union.

“Following last year’s massive influx of illegal migrants from North African shores to Southern Europe and the fatalities that sadly ensued, we were left with no other choice but to send a strong message to our European partners saying that unless tangible action is forthcoming, the Mediterranean Sea risked becoming a cemetery for more and more innocent lives,” he said.

He added: “We need to stop this haemorrhage of lives from prevailing. As long as we manage to diminish such an influx through proper, coordinated planning, we can look forward towards a more secure future for both our countries and the countries of origin.”

Following the luncheon, Dr Papoulias planted a tree at San Anton Gardens and left in the afternoon.