Malta has had no contact with Nato and its efforts with regard to Libya were purely humanitarian, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said today.

Briefing the press outside the Auberge de Castille, Dr Gonzi said that all those who implied a link between Malta and Nato were giving a disservice.

International news channel Al Jazeera this morning carried a feature which linked Malta to a military build-up against Libya. It also carried a recording of a conversation between a Nato early warning aircraft and a Maltese air traffic controller where the controller was asked about a Libyan aircraft flying in the region.

Dr Gonzi said that Malta, was not and would not serve as a military base.

Asked if he had known about the British SAS operation to Libya (to make contact with the provisional government in Benghazi) Dr Gonzi replied 'no'.

He said the government was working to minimise the negative impact which the current regional instability would have on the Maltese economy.

It was also continuing to help in the evacuation of workers and on the provision of humanitarian aid.

Malta, he said, had offered its assistance for the evacuation of workers on the Libya-Tunisia border and flights were being performed by Air Malta.

Malta was also backing humanitarian assistance by UNHCR and other organisations.