FIFTH MINISTERIAL MEETING OF MALTA-EU NEGOTIATING PROCESS HELD IN BRUSSELS

The progress of Malta’s accession negotiations during the past six months under the Belgian Presidency was the subject of discussion today during the fifth meeting of the conference on Malta’s accession to the European Union at Ministerial level, held in Brussels. Malta’s delegation was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Joe Borg.

During the session, Malta formally opened negotiations on the area of agriculture, the last remaining chapter where negotiations had still not commenced. The meeting also formally confirmed the provisional closure of negotiations on three areas during the past six months, namely, on free movement of persons, transport and social policy. In these areas, Malta obtained special arrangements as follows:

• Two safeguards on free movement of workers with respect to the right of EU citizens to work in Malta; one lasting for the first seven years after membership, another applicable after the first seven years.

• Four transitional periods in the area of Transport, and

• Four transitional periods in the area of Social Policy and Employment.

Today’s meeting, therefore formally confirmed the current progress in negotiations where discussions on all twenty-nine areas available for negotiations at this stage have now been opened, whereas negotiations on nineteen areas have been closed.

The areas of competition and Justice and Home Affairs were also discussed today, although negotiations on these areas are still open.

Addressing the conference, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Joe Borg welcomed the progress achieved so far in Malta’s accession process and in particular expressed his satisfaction at the "important success" that Malta made in obtaining safeguards in the area of free movement of workers.

He also noted that Malta was close to "a similarly important agreement" in negotiations on free movement of capital, which includes consideration of the sensitive issue of the right of EU citizens to purchase property in Malta. On this point, the Minister said that there was "agreement on the need for Malta to maintain some measure of restraint on the purchase of property and that agreement on an appropriate formula to meet this objective is in sight".

On this point, Commissioner Verheugen, who also addressed the meeting, said that he hoped that the working group of the Council of Ministers on enlargement could soon reach an agreement on a special solution for Malta with respect to secondary residences. He said that everyone was aware of Malta’s demographic and geographic conditions and that this situation was not of a transient nature. He added that on this specific issue, Malta’s conditions show no similarity to that of any other candidate country or even of any current Member State. Commissioner Verheugen concluded saying that it cannot be in the interest of the European Union that an ordinary Maltese family could find difficulty in buying property in its own country. Therefore, this situation had to be borne in mind in negotiations with Malta on this point.

In his address, Minister Borg also referred to negotiations on agriculture, the last area where talks have commenced, Dr Borg said that "the key issue for Malta under this chapter is finding an acceptable and at the same time effective way of ensuring the survival and further development of a very small scale agriculture which is however closely integrated within Malta’s social and environmental fabric."

Minister Borg also said that in the coming months, further progress was expected in negotiations on a number of other areas, but in addition, he also expected further work on strengthening Malta’s ability to implement the acquis. The Minister also made reference to a trade agreement that was recently concluded with respect to fish that is exported from Malta to the EU and augured that consultations would soon commence on a similar agreement for certain agricultural goods.

The session was also addressed by the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Louis Michel, on behalf of the EU Presidency. Minister Michel expressed its satisfaction at the "irreversible progress" that has been registered by Malta in the light of the EU’s plans for new countries to join the EU in time for the next elections of the European Parliament in June 2004.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs was accompanied by Mr. Richard Cachia Caruana, Chairman of Malta’s Core Negotiating Group, Mr. Victor Camilleri, Malta’s Ambassador in Brussels, Mr Saviour Falzon, Head of the EU Directorate, Dr Simon Busuttil, Head of the Malta-EU Information Centre, Mr Patrick Tabone, the Minister’s Personal Assistant and by a number of officials from Malta’s Embassy in Brussels.