No real defence

I note with incredulity Robert Abela’s refusal to pay for, or borrow money, to buy weapons as part of the new EU initiative to improve European defence and security, following the seismic shift in position coming from the US.

Does our prime minister really think that neutrality is some sort of guarantee against invasion or occupation by a malign foreign power?

An AFM soldier. Photo: Armed Forces of Malta

And what would he do if the EU took a Trumpian stance and refused to support those who do not contribute enough to the joint cause of European security?

It is time to reassess neutrality in the light of this new reality. Malta is a lame duck with no real defence against a bigger and more powerful enemy.

What is he waiting for?

Janet Wojtkow – St Julian’s

My utopian dream

Recently, I had a dream: it is the year AD 3000. The world population hovers around a billion, a stark reduction from now.

The year 2075 marked the beginning of humanity’s agony, a period defined by climate catastrophes and atomic wars that nearly extinguished us.

From the few thousands that survived extinction we have rebounded to about a billion people in the year 3000 of my dream. They are organised into roughly 100 nations. Though smaller than our present eight billion, this population is far wiser.

Polluting emissions are almost non-existent, weapons are scarce, atomic bombs have vanished and the arms trade is a distant memory. Conflicts still arise, but they are not fuelled by lethal weapons. 

Instead, they are resolved through global solidarity against national wrongdoers, who crumble under the weight of trade barriers, economic sanctions and isolation imposed by a nearly united world. Not a single lethal weapon is fired.

I was so disappointed to wake up.

If only Vladimir Putin and other warmongers could be forced to relinquish their brutally seized prizes through sanctions, trade barriers and near-total isolation, without a single shot fired.

What a pity it is not yet the year AD 3000 of my utopian dream.

Albert Said – Naxxar 

Gozo tourism

Last week, I drove an English couple who wanted to visit Gozo. Being old, they both had a challenge of mobility and the man could only walk with the aid of a walking stick.

Upon arrival to Ċirkewwa, the next ferry to Gozo was the miserable Nicolaus. Obviously, without a lift, my friends had to stay in the car since they could not go up the stairs.

They wished to visit the Cittadella. As we arrived, we saw a notice informing us that the lift was out of order. This made it impossible for my friends to visit the Cittadella. An employee told me that the lift had been out of service for weeks because spare parts were not available.

Unfortunately, the English couple were not very happy with their visit to Gozo.

Such mishaps do not promote quality tourism.

Alfred Attard – Rabat