Bartolo rubbishes claim of Turkey seeking Malta air base for Libyan campaign

Foreign minister Evarist Bartolo has shot down speculation that Turkey wants to use an air base in Malta to help its military campaign inside Libya against the GNA rivals.

Bartolo told The Financial Times the suggestion was “rubbish”.

“There has been no such request,” he said. “We are a tiny, neutral country — it’s in our constitution. It’s not in our interests and I think it’s not in the interests of the Mediterranean for Malta to be used against any neighbouring country.”

Turkey is militarily allied to the UN-recognised Government of National Accord in Libya, which has been locked in war against Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar and his Libyan National Army. Haftar is backed by Egypt, the UAE, as well as Russian mercenaries and also France.

But Turkey’s supplies to Libya are now the subject of increased tension in the Eastern Mediterranean: Greece and Cyprus want Turkish movements curtailed, and Egypt has joined with Greece in declaring an exclusive economic zone in the region.

Additionally, fears that the Mediterranean could become a conflict zone increased after France deployed naval vessels and fighter aircraft and Athens.

Bartolo urged talks to avert possible escalation after Ankara mounted a new naval expedition to search for gas, while Greece and Cyprus pressed EU allies to impose more sanctions against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government.

“If they are on very bad terms and there’s a lot of hostility, it is going to spill over into the rest of the Mediterranean,” Mr Bartolo told the Financial Times in an interview. “It’s in our interests to as much as possible find ways of de-escalating and having dialogue, however difficult it is.”

Bartolo said he had told Mevlut Cavusoglu, his Turkish counterpart, in July that the 1962 Cuban missile crisis was a good example of face-saving resolution to a dangerous stand-off. He added that the EU’s “difficult and complicated relationship” with Turkey went beyond the energy disputes and must take account of Ankara’s crucial role in curbing migration to the bloc.

“If we turn away from each other, I don’t think it will be a good development — even for the European Union,” Bartolo said.

The EU has so far imposed only largely symbolic sanctions over Ankara’s energy expeditions in waters off Cyprus. EU foreign ministers will discuss the eastern Mediterranean situation at an informal meeting in Berlin this week, ahead of talks by bloc leaders at a summit in Brussels in September.

France is supporting demands from Greece and Cyprus for a tougher line against Turkey. But other EU member states are reluctant to undermine the relationship with Turkey further, given the country’s importance for migration policy, counter-terrorism and trade.

France deployed a helicopter carrier, a frigate and two Rafale fighters in the eastern Mediterranean this month. Bartolo instead praised Germany’s moderating influence. “I think that whatever step we need to take it’s important that it doesn’t lead to a vicious circle. I appreciated a lot what Germany is doing. I think that Germany is a great stabiliser, moderator, talking to different countries, keeping an open channel of communication. I think that is crucial to do that.”