The Maltese Prime Minister has stressed that he is not going to allow that Malta become a centre in the Mediterranean for migrants who were saved by humanitarian vessels and that no other countries want to allow to enter their ports.
The Prime Minister said that how the situation was handled was “a matter of principle” so not to set a precedent and turn Malta into a centre where boats carrying rescued migrants from any part of the Mediterranean could go, the Malta Independent said.
Joseph Muscat said on Sunday, during a One Radio interview, that the government had to “find a balance between safeguarding people’s lives and not bringing Malta and its national security under threat”, MaltaToday reports.
The Times says that Dr Muscat said it would be the easiest thing to play the part of the “Christmas saint” and allow the group of migrants to disembark on the island, but this would open the island to becoming a Mediterranean disembarkation centre for refugees stuck at sea.
The Prime Minister also raised doubts about the rescue methods employed by the NGOs, saying he would not get into this kettle of fish on the air as it would take too long.
“There are many different opinions on the dynamics of these rescues and how they were conducted but I won’t get into that here,” he was reported saying by The Times.
