Ian Borg Explains What Malta Got Up To In New York As He Dismisses Criticism Of ‘Expensive Trip’
Foreign Affairs Minister Ian Borg has dismissed criticism that Malta’s recent delegation to the UN General Assembly in New York was too expensive.
The trip, which Times of Malta reported cost around €140,000, has become a topic of political controversy, with PN leader Bernard Grech pouncing on it as an example of mismanagement of public funds ahead of a protest this weekend.
However, Borg said that such comments are “laughable”.
“I get that [Grech] is trying to raise enthusiasm among PN supporters because he is threatened by what he himself had orchestrated against Adrian Delia two years ago,” he said on ONE TV’s Pjazza. “However, God forbid foreigners had to listen to those kinds of arguments or they would laugh at him.”
Opposition Leader Bernard Grech
Borg said the Maltese delegation held several meetings in New York in relation to the rotating UN Security Council seat that Malta will occupy in 2023 and 2024.
“Malta is taking on a huge responsibility at a time of intensified global conflict and the eyes of the world are on how Malta plans to act at the UN Security Council,” he said, stating that way more countries than usual wanted to meet with Malta at this year’s UNGA.
“Many countries often wonder whether they should meet Malta or not, however everyone wants to meet you when you’re on the Security Council. From conflict in South Asia and conflict in Yemen to the war in Ukraine, everyone is approaching us to warn us about their conflicts and to find out how Malta will act.”
Besides security-related issues, the Maltese delegation held a meeting with Kiribati, which is expected to be the first country that rising sea levels will submerge as a result of climate change.
“One can say that you only care about what happens in Malta, and the PL government certainly cares about Malta,” Borg said. “However, we are also part of the diplomatic world and are actors in the world.”
“We have now taken on this responsibility at the UN Security Council, a position that a PN government had applied for.”
Cover photo: Ian Borg (left) with Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba in New York
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