Should Malta allow French warships to enter Grand Harbour, it would need to grant the same facilities to Islamic State, and if Malta gives humanitarian help to France, it should do likewise with IS, former Prime Minister Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici has been reported as saying.

In comments to inewsmalta.com, Dr Mifsud Bonnici said that should Malta be against IS, it could expect to be treated as an enemy.

Referring to France’s call for help from its EU partners, Dr Mifsud Bonnici pointed to Malta’s constitutional clauses on neutrality and non-alignment.

Malta, he said, should not join the war which "France had declared".

However, he pointed out that Malta should help everybody where it came to humanitarian help.

He stressed that Malta should not involve itself in crusades against other countries.

Apart from what was provided in the constitution, Malta should not smear itself and be an accomplice against Islamic State. It should be neither in favour, nor against. Should it be against IS it could risk suffering the fate of Paris, which came under attack by terrorists last Friday. This was not in Malta’s interest, the former Labour leader said.

Malta, he said, should discourage warship visits entering from any country. Should French warships be allowed in, Malta would have to allow warships from other countries which may be against France. Everybody had to be treated in the same way.