[WATCH] Evarist Bartolo praises French President for opening dialogue with Russia over Ukraine crisis

The “drums of war” must not be allowed to drown out diplomacy, Maltese Foreign Minister Evarist Bartolo said as he praised efforts of French President Emmanuel Macron to establish dialogue with Russia over the Ukraine crisis.

Bartolo spoke during the launch of Malta’s Foreign policy Strategy in Valletta. The foreign minister said diplomacy had a vital role to play and that defence ministers and the military defence complex should not overshadow the efforts of diplomacy.

“Diplomacy means sitting down and trying to understand the interest of the other side and trying to find common ground. The alternative to this is war, and war today, more than ever before, would be catastrophic and in no one’s interest,” Bartolo said.

Earlier in the week, Emmanuel Macron completed a diplomatic mission to Moscow and Kyiv, claiming that he had received personal assurances from Vladimir Putin that Russia would not worsen the crisis over Ukraine.

The French president suggested that “Finlandising” Ukraine – which would mean that the country remained neutral – might resolve the crisis. However, this has received backlash, notably from the United States, seeing as the Biden administration has rejected Putin’s demand that NATO rules out membership for Ukraine.

Reacting to Macron’s comments, Bartolo praised the French President’s initiative to meet Putin. “I think, especially in times of crisis and when there are tensions and problems, that is the time to talk. So, I think it is crucial for Macron to travel to Moscow to discuss European security. How can European security be allowed to be discussed when Europeans are absent?”

The foreign minister said that it would merely be power politics for the US and Russia to talk about Europe without Europe being present.

“Macron did coordinate with the EU, and I’m sure he also coordinated with NATO. And I think his approach, of sovereignty, security, that no country should impose on others, what their security arrangements are and at the same time address the security concerns of every country including Russia is the way forward,” Bartolo said.

Malta’s foreign policy based on a solid ‘core belief system’

Bartolo said the aim of Malta's foreign policy was to support the values, well-being and prosperity of Maltese citizens. The policy is intended to promote peace, security and dialogue as a neutral nation. This is the only viable response to all nation-states face, especially small states, he said.

Another aspect is to maximise opportunities for influence in strategic regions and multilateral fora. This strategy should see Malta until 2030.  

‘The Maltese people would never accept SOFA’

Asked by MaltaToday, whether he could see Malta signing a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with the US in the future, Bartolo said that he does not think he will be the last Maltese minister to resist SOFA.

“I don’t think I will be the last Maltese minister to resist SOFA. I am not in a position to say what will happen in the years to come in terms of political decisions, but what I can sense is that I don’t think the Maltese people would accept such an agreement,” Bartolo said.

Back in October 2020, there were rumours that Malta and the United States were in talks to sign a SOFA agreement – however, Bartolo has described them as “without merit.”

“The value of neutrality is not something that belongs to the political class; it belongs to the Maltese people. The Maltese people would never come to the point where they would accept a foreign jurisdiction will decide over a crime committed in Malta, and we’re not talking about international crime… if a citizen of another country commits a crime in Malta they should be treated as our citizens and tried in a Maltese court,” Bartolo said.

On neutrality, Bartolo said Malta’s stance continued to be important: “When the EU was proposing an answer to the Russian federation, we made it very clear, as one of the few countries that are neutral in the EU. For us, neutrality is important. NATO and the EU are not the same things.”