In a very hesitant tone, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle was non-committal on Libya’s request for €5 billion a year from the EU to help it contain illegal migration, insisting the issue had to be resolved bilaterally.
On a one-day visit during which he had talks with his counterpart, Tonio Borg yesterday, Dr Westerwelle was very cautious in his reply when asked about Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s request this week for billions of euros to stymie the flow of illegal immigrants into Europe.
“It was a request by a head of state of an important country and we will look into it,” he said during a press conference.
Malta has supported Libya’s request made by President Gaddafi on Monday during a state visit to Italy.
“I hesitate to comment in a concrete way because I do not want reactions that can have consequences. It is the EU’s common interest and responsibility to solve this in a bilateral way,” Dr Westerwelle said.
Talks between Dr Borg and Dr Westerwelle focused on Kosovo’s declaration of independence with both countries insisting this was a closed chapter.
Dr Borg said Malta would support Kosovo’s independence at the UN general assembly later this month when it debates a resolution submitted by Serbia, which has not recognised the territory’s secession. Germany was one of the first EU states to recognise Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia in 2008.
On the Middle East peace process, Dr Westerwelle said he talked with American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday night when she reported a positive start to renewed peace talks in Washington.
Dr Borg and Dr Westerwelle also discussed relations between the two countries, which were described as excellent.
Dr Borg noted that some 50 manufacturing German companies operated in Malta, employing about 2,240 employees.
He thanked Germany for its support in dealing with the influx of asylum seekers by taking 31 refugees.
Germany is participating in the EU pilot project on refugee resettlement and will be resettling another 100 refugees from Malta.