The Italian ambassador to Malta, Mario Sammartino, who will be terminating his mission in the coming weeks, paid a farewell visit to the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Evarist Bartolo.

The meeting was an opportunity to review the main issues on the bilateral, European and international agenda upon which there is a strong harmony between the two countries. Both countries are strongly committed, among other things, to the stability of the central Mediterranean, a shared management of migratory flows at European level, as well as the protection of the marine environment and its resources.

The ambassador expressed his deep appreciation to the minister for the commitment made to confirm and strengthen the values of the rule of law even in the most dramatic of circumstances that Malta experienced in the past months.

Both Sammartino and Bartolo agreed on the necessity to ensure cohesion and collaboration at the European level to counter the COVID-19 pandemic and its serious repercussions on the economic and social conditions of the two countries.

At the end of the meeting, the ambassador thanked the minister for the constant support, both of his staff and of the government, in successfully carrying out all the tasks pertinent to his three-year mission in Malta.