Updated 4.37pm with PL reaction and remarks by the EU Commission president.
The Nationalist Party on Wednesday criticised remarks by the prime minister which, it said, implied that he does not want to invest more in the armed forces.
On Sunday Robert Abela, when speaking at Cospicua, accused the Opposition of being intent on warmongering. Reacting to calls by European Parliament President Roberta Metsola for the EU to up its defence spending, the prime minister said the government aims to invest in people, not weapons.
"We do not believe in investing more in armaments, we believe in investing in people and peace. That is the key to economic and social progress," he said.
In its reaction, the Nationalist Party said investment in defence and the armed forces was an investment in peace-keeping in Malta and the region.
It said the prime minister's remarks were irresponsible and dangerous in the current international scenario, including Russia's illegal invasion of a sovereign country.
Abela's remarks on Metsola reflected unbridled partisan politics, it said. In view of the security concerns faced by European countries, Metsola had insisted on the need for the European Union to be able to defend itself and its democratic values. But Abela, instead of seeking the national interest, was playing politics, the PN said.
Furthermore, the prime minister was being hypocritical, saying one thing in Malta and another in European fora, undermining the country's integrity.
The statement was signed by Darren Carabott, shadow minister for home affairs and national security, and Beppe Fenech Adami, shadow minister for foreign affairs.
PL says PN is 'in favour of war'
In a reaction, the Labour Party said the PN had no shame when it 'used' the Armed Forces of Malta to justify the messages in favour of war by its members.
It said the government's messages in favour of peace were consistent in Malta and abroad.
Von der Leyen wants new defence tsar in second EU term
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen argued Wednesday for creating a post of defence commissioner to lead a drive to rearm Europe if she wins a second term in office.
The new role would focus on bolstering Europe's "defence industrial base" in the face of Russia's war on Ukraine, said the head of the European Union's executive.
"Citizens want more Europe in defence," she told journalists.
"They want us to invest more. They want us to invest better. They want us to invest European and smarter."
The EU is holding elections for the European parliament in June and the new commission will be chosen in the months that follow.
Von der Leyen is the favourite to claim another five-year term after getting the backing from a string of European governments.
She was speaking in Brussels alongside Manfred Weber, the head of the centre-right European People's Party which will anoint her as its candidate for the top job at a congress next month.
The drive to ramp up Europe's defence capabilities comes two years into Moscow's invasion and as the spectre of a return to the White House for an isolationist Donald Trump looms over the United States.
The Republican frontrunner to face President Joe Biden in November elections has rattled America's European allies in NATO by suggesting he wouldn't protect those not meeting financial obligations.
That has added to calls for the EU to ratchet up its efforts on defence, launched after Russia unleashed Europe's largest conflict since World War II.
Despite a raft of measures to bolster arms production in Europe the continent is struggling to manufacture enough weapons to keep Ukraine in the fight and refill its stocks.
The 27-nation bloc is set to fall well short of a pledge to give Ukraine a million artillery shells by March.
In the meantime, Russia has managed to step up its own production and has been receiving major deliveries of ammunition from North Korea.
Brussels is set to unveil a new plan to try to boost European production and joint purchases between EU states early next month.
At present the handling of European defence issues is divided between the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and internal market commissioner Thierry Breton. (AFP)