• The Apostolic Nuncio’s speech to     the President of Malta

     

  • The President’s Palace, Valletta
    10th January 2019

    Madame President of the Republic of Malta,

    The members of the Diplomatic Corps and the International Organisations accredited to the Republic of Malta have a long standing tradition that, at the start of the New Year, they present  warm and sincere greetings to Your Excellency, and through you, Madame President, to your esteemed spouse, Mr Edgar Preca, your advisors at the President’s Office and all the people of Malta.

    Madame President,

    The year 2018 has passed into history. However, the forces that move history remain within us, whether to continue building networks of peace and solidarity, or unfortunately, to hinder or even destroy the outreach of friendship and progress already achieved. 

    Evidently, every beginning of a new year is always marked by a inner hope: the hope that the new course of history will see the prevailing of forces that  tend to support and promote the dignity of the human person – of every person  without any difference –  and allow to live an authentic human life, with friendly relations between peoples and cultures; the hope that the new year will see the increasing affirmation of forces that lead to progress on the path of solidarity, in the wake of the well-known traditions, of caring attention to all, which has always distinguished these islands.  But this obviously, with the necessary prudence and within the limits allowed by a correct understanding of the common good, keeping in mind the harmonious development of the countries’ communities.

    Madam President,

    On this auspicious occasion, as privileged observers of the Maltese society, we wish to renew our admiration for the activities that Your Excellency tirelessly carries out at the service of the common good, as supreme guarantor of the constitutionality and unity of the country.

    At the same time, we present you – and through you to all the citizens of the Republic of Malta – the wish that the new year will see even more the growth of  positive energies in the Maltese society.

    Madame  President of the Republic,

    Happy New Year to you and your dear family!

    Happy New Year to the Government and those who have public responsibilities!

    Happy New Year to people of good will and all Maltese citizens!

    May God Almighty bless and protect Malta, always!

    Thank you very much!

     


  • The Apostolic Nuncio’s speech to     the Prime Minister of Malta

     


  • Auberge de Castille, Valletta
    10th January 2019

    Honourable Prime Minister,

    The Diplomatic Corps and the International Organizations accredited to Malta have the honour to present to Your Excellency and to the Government of the Republic of Malta warm greetings and best wishes for the New Year. They are as cordial as the warm hospitality we receive from the high authorities we meet in the course of our duties, to whom we renew our sentiments of deep gratitude and esteem.

    Honourable Prime Minister,

    As official representatives of our countries, we are privileged to follow the political and social events in Malta and honoured to often share with Your Excellency the hopes and challenges of our times. In this context, let me say that we follow your activities with great attention and respect. We appreciate very much your tireless commitment to strengthening the position of Malta within the family of Nations and we sincerely congratulate you for what you have achieved.

    As privileged observers of the events which happen in Malta, we have noted with pleasure that last year Malta not only continued to play its important role on the international scene, but we have also noticed that at home your government adopted several measures in order to ensure that the economic growth does not remain a privilege of few but can have beneficial effects for all Maltese citizens.

    At the same time, we found that Malta once again faced complex challenges, which unfortunately recur periodically, due to its geographical location in the centre of the Mediterranean. I refer to the issue of migrants, who often knocked on the doors of these islands, traditionally so hospitable and welcoming.

    In this regard, allow me to express my personal gratitude for the time dedicated to me when we have discussed together these topics. I recall well that you wished to affirm that the Maltese Government and its people do desire to continue in the tradition of hospitality and solidarity that have distinguished the centuries-old history of these islands. However, you wanted to point out that obviously, this is not an issue that Malta can solve on its own: it is a problem that must be faced together with the international community, and in particular with the countries of the European Union. Furthermore, you referred to the necessary prudence that must accompany Malta and the countries most exposed to these challenges, in the context of their concrete situations and the limits prompted by the common good, especially with regards to the security and sustainable development of the local communities.

    My gratitude is even greater for these clarifications because often we too, Representatives of the countries in diplomatic relations with Malta,  sometimes find ourselves faced with partial interpretations of the choices and decisions taken here.  

    Honourable Prime Minister,

    Our wishes to Your Excellency and to all the Maltese people are that the dawn of the New Year may even further illuminate the path of Maltese society and lead it to a lasting progress and attention for all, based on solidarity and sustainability. 

    Happy New Year to you and your dear family!

     Happy New Year to all the members of the Government of the Republic of Malta.

    Happy New Year to all who have a responsibility in public life and service.

    May the New Year bring renewed energies at the service of the solidarity and sustainable progress, for the common good of the people of these Islands.

    May God Almighty bless and protect Malta, always!

    Thank you very much!

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  • The Apostolic Nuncio’s speech to     the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion

     


  • Auberge de Castille, Valletta
    10th January 2019

    Honourable Minister Abela,

    On behalf of the Diplomatic Missions and International Organizations accredited to the Republic of Malta, it is my honour to present again to Your Excellency our New Year greetings, and through you, to your distinguished Spouse and your family, as well as to  the Her Excellency, the Permanent Secretary and the staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion.  To all of you,we are extremely grateful for the cordial and efficient collaboration extended to us,  in our daily service, which facilitates our missions and renders our work even more effective. 

    Dear Minister,

    Another year has passed:  a year which, similar to other years, had its share of happy and sad events.  Malta is among those nations that are in the forefront of progress and prosperity. However, combined with this, Malta is also facing several challenges, in order to continue on the path of solidarity, which traditionally marks its multi-millennial history.

    Obviously, we are thinking first of all, of the solidarity among states, which is already strong because of  Malta’s membership in the International Community and in the European Union.  But we are thinking above all of the solidarity among peoples, especially those most in need, fleeing home and country, and knocking also at Malta’s door of hospitality. 

    Evidently – as I tried to elaborate this morning in my address to the Honorable Prime Minister – these are complex issues that require a global approach and a global strategy of the international community, for which your ministry has worked intensively last year. Furthermore, we realize that one cannot overlook the problems that come from the concrete circumstances and the limits required by the common good, especially for what concerns the security and the sustainable development of the communities of these Islands.

    However, with the inner hope that accompanies every beginning of a new year, we trust that your ministry and the Government of the Republic will continue doing all that is in their realistic possibilities to reaffirm the traditional hospitality and the well-known sense of solidarity of Malta. 

    Honourable Minister,

    Let me add that even during the last year we noticed that Your Excellency received many foreign dignitaries and travelled abroad extensively, in order to forward  Malta’s best interest in the international scene, both within the European Union and the Mediterranean Zone and beyond. We congratulate you for what you have achieved and respectfully wish you all the best in your future activities.

    Dear Minister, once again, Happy New Year to you,  to your distinguished Spouse and your Family, as well as to your much-appreciated collaborators at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion.

    May God Almighty bless and protect Malta, always.

    Thank you very much.      

    ✠ Mgr Alessandro D’Errico

         Apostolic Nuncio and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps

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  • Photos – OPR and DOI – Clifton Fenech