The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times reports that low cost airlines are objecting to the EU over the Air Malta rescue funding.
The Malta Independent reports that the governor of the Central Bank has urged the government to reduce its spending.
In Nazzjon quotes the Finance Minister saying that criticism by the Opposition on the power station were only a sign that the Opposition could not find anything with which to criticise the government.
l-orizzont reports that two Italian surgical teams are being engaged by the government to cut down on waiting lists.
The overseas press
The Wall Street Journal reports President Barack Obama has announced that Nato has agreed to develop a missile defence shield capable of protecting all Nato states in Europe as well as the United States. Speaking on the opening day of a Nato summit in Lisbon, Mr Obama said the missile system would involve stationing US interceptor missiles and radar in Europe. The 28 Nato leaders would invite Russia to join the system when they meet President Dmitry Medvedev this weekend. Today’s session would focus on the strategy for Afghanistan.
The BBC says Afghan President Hamid Karzai was preparing to meet Nato leaders in Lisbon for talks on withdrawing troops from his country by the end of 2014. A spokesman for Mr Karzai said he and Nato shared the "same strategic interests" but that there were many issues still to be worked out.
Meanwhile, British nationals today focus on 22-year-old Guardsman Christopher Davies, the 100th member of Britain's armed forces in Afghanistan to die this year. The Independent dedicates the whole front page to the event under the heading “In Lisbon, they talk. In Afghanistan, they die”.
Courier Mail reports some 15,000 people lined the streets of Brisbane to welcome home 2,500 troops from the 7th Brigade who served in Afghanistan, East Timor and Iraq. In a poignant reminder of the realities of war, six riderless horses in the parade symbolised each soldier who was killed during their tour of duty in Afghanistan this year. A handful of soldiers who were injured in Afghanistan this year were driven in army trucks or pushed in wheelchairs through the parade.
The Financial Times says Irish government ministers meet today to hammer out the final details of an emergency €15-billion financial programme to stabilise the economy. Experts from the International Monetary Fund and the European Union spent yesterday in Dublin combing through the balance sheets of Ireland’s banking sector as well as the public finances, with a view to determining how big the bail-out should be.
The New Zealand Herald says rescuers have been given clearance to enter the New Zealand coal mine where 29 men went missing after a gas explosion. The rescue mission had been delayed because of fears a gas build up could cause another explosion, but 20 rescue staff now had the green light to enter the mine. Three air samples from the mine showed the gas was not explosive.
According to Avvenire, the Vatican would issue guidelines on how to combat sexual abuse. The guidelines, which would offer a coordinated and efficient programme, would be circulated to bishops around the world. Pope Benedict has been taking part in a rare, closed-door meeting of about 150 cardinals from around the world. He is due to elevate 24 new cardinals at a ceremony later today.
Deutsche-Welle quotes German interior minister Thomas de Maiziere saying a suspected bomb intercepted in Namibia that was to be put on a Munich-bound plane was only "a dummy" used to test security checks. He said it was a "so-called real test suitcase" made by a company in the United States that makes alarm and detection systems. German security experts are in the process of working out who the suitcase had been sold to and when.
Il Mattino reveals the European Commission has asked Italy to repay €720,000 spent on an Elton John concert in Naples last September, after a furore over alleged misuse of regional funding. Earlier this month Northern League MEP Mario Borghezio requested European Commissioner for Regional Policy Johannes Hahn look into the way centre-left local authorities had used European taxpayers' money to bring the British pop star to the southern Italian city's Piedigrotta culture festival. The gig drew 80,000 fans.
Bangkok Post says Thai police investigating a strong smell emanating from a Buddhist temple have found more than 2,000 foetuses hidden in the complex’s morgue that appear to have come from illegal abortion clinics. During an initial investigation at the temple in Bangkok on Tuesday, police discovered piles of plastic bags containing more than 300 foetuses. Abortion is illegal in Thailand except under three conditions – if a woman is raped, if the pregnancy affects her health or if the foetus is abnormal.