Foreign Minister ‘surprised’ by Russian diplomat complaint

Foreign Minister George Vella will be looking into the reasons behind Russia’s chilly reaction to Malta’s refusal last month to allow a Russian warship destined for Syria to refuel in Maltese waters, but has stood by the decision.

The Russian Foreign Ministry yesterday issued its belated reaction, criticising the decision to turn the ships away, saying that Malta had “fallen victim to the West’s information war.”

Contacted by MaltaToday, Vella, who appeared surprised at the new development, said that to his knowledge, the issue had already been resolved at a diplomatic level.

“We act strictly according to what is expected of us by our Constitutional neutrality,” the minister said.

In the coming weeks, Vella will accompany Prime Minister Joseph Muscat to Russia where they will be meeting Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. MaltaToday understands that the visit has long been scheduled, and strengthening of business relations is on the agenda.

Asked whether he expected the refuelling issue to be discussed, Vella said he could not confirm whether the issue will be raised.

“I can’t say whether the issue will be raised. What I can say is that we have exchanged communications, in which we explained our position without retreating from it and we were told that this had been accepted.

“But now, with a spokesperson from Moscow making such declarations, we need to see what’s behind it. The visit is still on, the meetings are scheduled and I will be part of the delegation.”

Late last month, Vella told Parliament that Malta would not be allowing the warships to refuel in Malta because the country did not want to be complicit in any help offered to Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.

But a spokeswoman for Vella’s Russian counterpart described the ban as an attempt to “exert pressure on all fronts and create a certain atmosphere in the information space.”

Maria Zakharova, on behalf of the Russian Foreign Ministry, told news agency Tass that Vella’s statement “falls out of line with any diplomatic routine though he stated it many times that the decision was passed independently without any external pressure proceeding from the purposes, which our military pursue.”

“The Maltese Foreign Ministry believes that the Russian military machine is committing atrocities in Syria, especially against women and children. These are the total victims of Western propaganda,” the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed.

“It is an open secret what Russia is doing in Syria. Unlike the Western coalition, we issue regular detailed reports.”

She was further quoted saying: “Countries, which do not have their own perspective on the situation and an independent foreign policy, are reading this information code and are engaged in open self-censorship not because of any outside pressure but on the basis of media publications for fear that anything may happen.”

The vessel in question, RFS Dubna, forms part of a Russian naval task group that includes the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, the nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser Pyotr Veliky and two destroyers. It recently entered the Mediterranean in what the chairman of the Russian parliament’s defence committee, Vladimir Shamanov, had earlier described as a “show of flag” and as part of a rotation.

But later reports have officials saying that warplanes from the Admiral Kuznetsov would be targeting rebels on the outskirts of Aleppo, where they have launched a counter offensive against the Syrian government-controlled western part of the city.

“The attacks are to hit the long-range approaches to the city,” Interfax news agency quoted a Defence Ministry spokesman as saying.

A Russian Ministry of Defence source told local media Gazeta.ru that “the group’s main goal is to carry out missile strikes on terrorists outside of Aleppo that are attempting to get into the city.”

The deployment of the Admiral Kuznetsov is the first active combat mission for a Russian aircraft carrier since Russia intervened in Syria last September.