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'No military bases in Malta', government on no-fly zone developments
Malta has to open airspace to military aircraft to enforce UNSC resolution for no-fly zone.
Malta will have to give permission to the multi-national force that will implement the United Nations Security Council resolution for a no-fly zone over Libya, to allow military aircraft to pass through its flight information region.
At 3:22pm, the Maltese government issued a terse statement to declare that "there are no military bases in Malta."
Whlie Royal Airforce ground attack aircraft are ready to help impose a no-fly zone over Libya, with the UK already having two ships off the Libyan coast, foreign media was reporting that Chinook helicopters and early-warning aircraft equipped with long-range radar were based in Malta.
Such aircraft would still need permission from the Maltese government to use them in action over Libya while flying through its airspace.
Britain will imminently start moving fighter jets to bases from where they can help enforce a no fly zone over Libya, Prime Minister David Cameron said today
Cameron, who said British forces would join the UN-sponsored operation if Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi failed to stop attacks on civilians, said the international community would soon set out what it expected from Gaddafi.
Cameron will also attend a summit in Paris on Saturday to discuss the situation with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Arab leaders.
"Britain will deploy Tornadoes and Typhoons as well as air-to-air refuelling and surveillance aircraft," Cameron told parliament.
Malta's airspace has been a hub of military activity with NATO Awacs surveying the Mediterranean and tracking Libyan aircraft.
The Guardian reports that Britain and France could begin operating a limited no-fly zone over the rebel stronghold of Benghazi with little or no US support, though it may have only a limited impact on Gaddafi's brutal crackdown on the rebels.
A force of six to eight Typhoon fighters could be deployed to patrol over Benghazi, supported by two or three tankers for air-to-air refuelling and Nimrod R1 reconnaissance aircraft.
Libya has as few as 40 operational fixed-wing aircraft. Most are Soviet-era, Russian-built fighters that are obsolescent in western terms, although there are also some more modern French Mirage F1s.
Libya has closed its air space to all traffic, according to European air traffic control organisation Eurocontrol, a move that may anticipate the U.N.'s imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya.
The Maltese government was already aware of British special forces in Malta on stand-by for Libya evacuations. Earlier press reports of the SAS (Special Air Service) troops holed up in a hotel in Malta generated a flurry of concern from government officials, who are conscious of appearing to be hosting foreign forces for military intervention.
While Malta is constitutionally a neutral country, Libya happens to be the guarantor of this neutrality along with Italy.
Eurocontrol said it had received information from Malta that Tripoli air traffic control had put out a notice saying it was not accepting any aircraft into Libyan airspace "until further notice".
"That is the only information we have at this time," said a spokeswoman for Eurocontrol. "It is information passed onto us from Maltese authorities."
The United Nations Security Council voted on Thursday to impose a no-fly zone over Libya and to provide help for Libyan rebels fighting to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi.
The decision is expected to involve air operations by Britain, France and the United States in the coming hours. Libyan fighter planes continue to carry out attacks in eastern Libya, targeting rebels in the city of Misrata and Benghazi, Libya's second largest city and a stronghold of the rebel movement.
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Malta should help its allies and grant a temporary military base facility. Our neighbour deserves all the help it can get, anything less will turn us into allies of Gaddafi.
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@antoin
Whatever my light is, Gonzi is going by mine and not yours. !!!
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Martin, your light is darkness.
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@antoine vella
What should be worring you is that gonzi has seen the light and is practicing Malta's neutrality as etched in the constitution although his pityful party discredited in the past.
He listened to US not to you and your kind, he's playing the game by the rules WE set and not your game as set by your masters in Brussels.
That is what you should worry about, gonziPN is following Labour which is the only party that ever led the country straight.
Whatever you say antoine and those like you, your beloved leader "jistmah fejn ma jarax xemx" to be polite, although in english it is more accurately described.
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Why should we want to turn back? Gaddafi has to go and nobody will turn back until he does.
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The PM should note that only Mintoffjani - the most faithful of Gaddafi's friends - applaud with his..er..'prudent' approach. This should worry him.
Micheal Bonanno •
@all who are saying that Malta should help in UN sanctions and actions. Once you've opened the door for military activities, there's no turning back. I think the PM was wise to point out that Malta will not be a base for military actions. For once I agree with the PM!
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i agree with Antoine, Malta should help the people of Libya as best as it can, if this means helping foreign powers police the no fly zone then so be it, neutrality is bulls*it if it also means we dont care about others, the problems in Libya is not a war but Gadaffi a dictator killing his own people, or if you like commiting crimes against humanity, so i dont see the problem re neutrality.
Malta should help to enforce any effort military or otherwise to help stop this murderer from killing his people and to comply with UN resolutions for the sake of humanity and not aid and abet Gadaffi's atrocities, wake up Gonzi, this is reality !!!
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Jerry, I'm not "shouting"; only telling you things as they are.
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Nobody expects Maltese to actually fly warplanes and take up arms but we cannot - should not - shirk our responsibilities out of fear. Malta can and should help the military effort.
Lino Camilleri •
@ Antoine Vella
Dont be hypocrite to come and shout that you are one of the few in the globe that you care for others more then yourself. In this case why dont you go at the frontline to show your caring. I know the maltese people very well.
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Jerry, you said "Who told you that I dont care about Libyans. But as our govt is stating that our priority is our security."
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You mean you care about Libyans but you care about yourself more.
Lino Camilleri •
@ Antoine Vella
The government has decided that Malta will not be used as a base for the enforcement of a no-fly zone over Libya, the Prime Minister said this afternoon.
Dr Gonzi said the government’s priority was the security of the country and its people and its decisions were based on this consideration.
You should show respect to others view. Who told you that I dont care about Libyans. But as our govt is stating that our priority is our security.
Jessica Chetcuti •
Martin,
You’re right….. In fact in April 86 two scud missiles were fired at a US coastguard navigation station on Lampedusa which landed in the sea and caused no damage....... This was in retaliation of the US bombing of Tripoli.
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Freedom,
You’re quite right, as I’m old now, I'm probably on the verge of being obsolete, but I still have a very active mind………However I was hoping that you might come up with an valid arguement instead of an insult.
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Has anyone given a thought about Bahrain, over there protestors also are getting shot, don't you think whats good for the goose is good for the gander or are the arabs of Bahrain different from those of Libya?
Do we have any investments in Bahrain to worry about or this does not come into the equation?
Why did Saudi Arabia intervene whilst non-of the arab league interfered with the Libya crisis?
Isn't a dictator in Bahrain the same as a dictator in Libya?
Wakey wakey it is the same all over in the arab world. In Dubai the locals sleep on beds of money at present but they also are run by one family regime as are all the Emirates.
Isn't democracy over there needed?
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The people of Lockerbie thought they were safe from Gaddafi because they were so far away. The people of Vienna imagined they were safe from the murderer because Austria was neutral.
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They never suspected it but they became involved.
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Malta is involved first of all because this is a human rights issue right on our doorstep. There are those who care little for human rights ("nitnejjek mill-kostituzzjoni") so they have no problem with people being massacred. After all the victims are 'foreigners" and 'it's their fight".
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Malta is also involved because, Gaddafi is a paranoid serial killer and everyone can be a victim.
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@freedom
item (ii) therefore allows Malta to allow other countries sanctioned by the UN to secure the No-Fly zone, ie open its air-space.
You are right, non-of the three points allow the government to provide military bases.
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Jamrie It is people like you who are calling for the removal of our neutrality clause that are obsolete.
NO Antoine Vella, we are NOT involved.It is the big countries who are THIRSTY for OIL that are involved.
falzonsilvio I agree with you. We need not be involved even if there is a UN decision. It must be the Government who asks for the stationing of troops and we need not be involved at all in spite of the UN decision. This is what the Constitution says.
(3) Malta is a neutral state actively pursuing peace, security and social progress among all nations by adhering to a policy of non-alignment and refusing to participate in any military alliance.
Such a status will, in particular, imply that:
(a) no foreign military base will be permitted on Maltese territory;
(b) no military facilities in Malta will be allowed to be used by any foreign forces except at the request of the Government of Malta, and only in the following cases:
(i) in the exercise of the inherent right of self-defence in the event of any armed violation of the area over which the Republic of Malta has sovereignty, or in pursuance of measures or actions decided by the Security Council of the United Nations; or
(ii) whenever there exists a threat to the sovereignty, independence, neutrality, unity or territorial integrity of the Republic of Malta;
Read what it says "except at the request of the Government of Malta and only in the following cases." So it has to be the Government of Malta that requests the stationing of foreign troops in Malta and we neither want them nor are they needed as they have many bases in other countries and aircraft carriers.
This is apart from the fact that we have no military facilities.
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@jamrie
Can anyone foretell what a mad man might do, he did fire a missile once at Pantaleria, I believe.
What's going to stop him from shoting one at Malta if he get's the urge knowing we are hosting foreign military units?
One has to think of all eventualities, a missile falling in Sicily and killing say a hundred people is totally different from falling in Malta and killing a hundred people considering the size of our country.
Jessica Chetcuti •
All this rhetoric about our neutrality embedded in our constitution is becoming rather boring. Does anyone honestly think that Ghaddafi is at all bothered about our neutrality?
Supposing that we weren’t neutral and allowed military ships and aircraft to be deployed here, do you think that he is going to attack us? ....Of course not. Because he knows that any attack on an EU member is considered as an attack on the EU as a whole.
That is why the neutrality clause needs to be *amended it is obsolete and outdated.
Be that as it may, we all know that Ghaddafi is on the verge of being relegated to the annals of history, the rebels of today will more than likely be the government of tomorrow, so why not give them a helping hand.
*I believe Finland, Sweden Austria and Ireland are also contemplating changing the neutrality clause in their constitution.
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Malta Today has better check the validity of the second paragraph of this report.
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I believe that a "flight information region" is not the same as 'national airspace'. In other words it is not part of Malta and planes do not need our permission to go through.
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Besides the constitution, one has to check bilateral agreements with Italy and Libya.
Also we should consider our interest in all this because this will pass someday and the repercussions will take longer and will reach further.
duncan abela •
Nobody is above the maltese constitution and therefore we must not take any action before ensuring it does not in any way violate our neutrality. I suggest that before we ever contemplate any form of participation we should consult constitutional experts who are willing to assume responsibility in writing for the advice they give. We must all be aware of the recent British Chilcot Iraq inquiry and how the IRAQI weapons of mass destruction claim falsified justification for that war. The way Tony Blair misled and dissembled the state institutions in taking the UK to war should be an eyeopener. I see an uncanny resemblance in this adventure and the way the Iraqi attack was concocted.
Personally I am not certain that a United Nations resolution on its own allow us to participate in a military action unless the Maltese government itself requests participation. I trust our government will be very prudent, respect the constitution and tread carefully on this delicate issue before committing itself in any way.
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Jerry, we are ALREADY, in the middle of the conflict. Gaddafi himself has said it. Even if you care nothing for the Libyan people you have to understand that it's now in our interest to get rid of Gaddaffi as soon as possible.
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Take your head out of the sand: we are already involved.
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**Royal Airforce ground attack aircraft are ready to help impose a no-fly zone over Libya, with the UK already having two ships off the Libyan coast, and Chinook helicopters and early-warning aircraft equipped with long-range radar based in Malta.
But it still needs permission from the Maltese government to use them in action over Libya.**
Goverment permision?
Malta does not belongs neither to the PM now to any big headed .
Malta belongs to all maltese citizens.
Malta is always ready to help in humanitarian aid.
BUT NEVER TO BE USED A A BASE TO ATTACK AND KILL PEOPLE!
WHERE ARE THE MORALS NOW ?
I HOPE MUAMMAR GADDAFI STOPS NOW . BEFORE TOO MUCH BLOOD WILL BE SHED.
AND I HOPE MALTA WILL NOT BE USED AS IT HAD ALWAYS BEEN DONE!
NOT ANYMORE WE MUST KEEP THE NUATRAILITY ALWAYS. WAR IS NEVER GOOD-
i hope again gaddafi will stop and gives his people freedom- before too many countries attack his country and too much blood will eb shed.
this is not a video game. and Malta? NEVER it must be used to atack and kill people from here.
than they are just against a simple thing like divorce? bunch of hypocrites.
LIARSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.
Lino Camilleri •
On a lighter note. Malta's tourism authority is keen to correct what it says is incorrect information in parts of the British media.
Please be aware that there are NO British military bases in Malta, emails the Malta Tourism Authority. Two news sources - Sky News and Metro, have erroneously stated that British Military bases in Malta could be a possible target for Libyan counter attacks, Please be aware that this is false and that Malta has no British military bases and is not a target.
Lino Camilleri •
It will be a big mistake for us if we give permission to use our airspace to attack Libya. We can do so according to our constitution as the resolution was approved by the security council. But nobody is anticipating any consequences that we can find ourselves in the middle of this conflict. We are the first ground near Libya and Gaddafi has vowed to target the mediterranean region. How are we going to defend ourselves? The best decision for us is to help on humanitarian grounds and the rest can use other airspace outside ours.
