Maltese Foreign Affairs Minister Evarist Bartolo on Monday expressed his island nation’s support to Greece and Cyprus, in statement after a meeting with this Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias in Athens.
Referring directly to Turkish claims and saber-rattling in the eastern Mediterranean, Bartolo cited what he called a need for a peaceful resolution of differences within the framework of international law, especially the UN Convention for the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
“(UNCLOS) isn’t merely an international law we want to preserve, it’s part of our heritage, it is part of our national DNA.”
On his part, Dendias stressed and retweeted, in fact, that he reminded his Maltese counterpart that Greek-owned vessels flying the central Mediterranean island state’s flag is roughly 700 vessels, or one-fifth of Malta’s registry, while adding, diplomatically:
“and, of course, we consider that Greek shipping will continue to comprise a bridge between our two countries”.
