LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela announced that experts from the Financial Action Task Force will be visiting Malta ahead of a plenary session schedule in June. He was addressing students as part of the general election campaign. In June 2021, the international group of anti-money laundering included Malta in the list of countries under enhanced monitoring, often referred as the “grey list,” becoming the first and only EU country to be grey listed by the FATF. Earlier this month, the FATF plenary confirmed that Malta “addressed or largely addressed the action plan at the technical level”. In an action plan agreed with the FATF, Malta made a political commitment to focus its financial intelligence capabilities on tax evasion and money laundering and increase transparency on anonymous shell companies. Maltese Prime Minister Abela said that the government managed to address the 85 points raised by the FATF over a short period of time in spite of the coronavirus pandemic. He added that after the visit which would verify if Malta implemented its anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing reforms, a plenary would be held in June. It would then be decided whether Malta would be kept on the grey list or otherwise.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese health authorities continued to register an increase in COVID-19 cases for the third consecutive day. This is the first increase in two months since last January while the Maltese government continued to ease the restrictions in public places.
In today’s medical bullettin, the health authorities announced 304 new cases and 115 recoveries, bringing the total of positive cases to 1,861.
The Superintendent of Public Health Charmaine Gauci said that the increase in positive cases shows that “the pandemic is still here” and appealed for responsability particulary during political mass events as Malta is heading to a general election on March, 26.
Covid-19 has claimed the life of an 84-year-old woman, taking the total number of deaths since the beginning of the pandemic in Malta to 619. 50 patients are receiving treatment for Covid-19 in hospital, with one patient in intensive care.
Meanwhile, the government announced that mask wearing is no longer obligatory in outdoor public spaces. However mask wearing remained obligatory for indoor spaces such as offices and shops, and for mass events.
Malta is expecting to remove almost all preventive measures against the pandemic by the beginning of summer.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Due to the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, the European Commission has allocated over 35 million to Malta. By the end of the month, the Maltese government will be receiving over 13 million for 2021, another 10.5 million for 2022, and 10.7 million for 2023.
The Maltese government said that this fund will be used as soon as possible to alleviate the economic burden that many businesses adversely affected by Brexit, will face. The Member States may use the funding until 31 December 2023 to cover expenses incurred and paid since 1 January 2020.
According to the European Commission, this money will help member countries’ economies to alleviate the extra costs of the impact of Brexit on various economic sectors – small and medium-sized enterprises, job creation, and training, among others.
European Cohesion and Reform Commissioner, Elisa Ferreira, said Brexit has had a negative impact on the lives of European citizens, and said the Brexit Adjustment Reserve would be making up for the social and regional economic repercussions.
The Brexit Adjustment Reserve of 5.4 billion has been put in place to support all Member States with a strong focus on those most affected.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese government is estimating that Malta will suffer an economic loss of €200 million as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Maltese Finance Minsiter Clyde Caruana declared his worries during a debate organised by the Malta Chamber of Commerce. “I am more worried about the war, than I was worried about COVID-19, in economic terms. This is not just a war with bombs, but it is an economic war and its impact will not be small,” Caruana explained. However he added that the Maltese government put aside funds to buffer this economic shock.
Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela pledged to guarantee stable prices in gas, fuel and energy for the foreseeable future.
Altough Abela said that Malta was facing a problem to source LPG used in households as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Liquigas Malta said that it has secured supplies of LPG to meet the demand in Malta for the foreseeable future, thanks to the support of SHV Energy, a Dutch company shareholder of Liquigas Malta.
As the Ukraine crises deepens, the Opposition Leader Bernard Grech is proposing a temporarily fix of the price of bread.
Both Russia and Ukraine are among the world’s top five wheat exporters and a prolonged war will lead to shortages and steep increases in the price of basic foods such as bread and pasta.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The European Commission and the European Parliament are putting more pressure on Malta to put an end to its golden passport scheme.
While the European Commission is not excluding to take further steps against the Maltese government following the decision taken by the Maltese Prime Minister not to publish the personal details of Russian nationals who bought the Maltese citizenship, the European Parliament will be taking a vote on Wednesday on a report prepared by Dutch MEP Sophie In’t Veld calling for the stoppage of all citizenship-by-investment scheme by 2025, through a gradual phasing out, proposing that proceeds of such schemes should go towards the EU budget since they are based exclusively on the benefits of the union membership.
The European Parliament has been calling for a ban on the golden passports schemes since 2014. The European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reydners confirmed that the European Commission already started taking action on the schemes and wants to eliminate these programmes. Two years ago, the European Commission launched infringement procedures against Malta and Cyprus regarding the golden passport schemes. While Cyprus stopped its scheme, Malta has only suspended the scheme for Russians and Belorussians following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Nationalist MEP David Casa said that in the context of the invasion of Ukraine, once there are oligarchs close to Putin who have already acquired European citizenship, sanctions might be avoided. He insisted that those who “already bought their way into Europe through the backdoor” should be investigated thoroughly. “Now that these have become a security issue, enough is enough”.
Following the decision taken by the Maltese Prime Minister not to provide the list of Russians who bought the Maltese citizenship, the European Commission said that such schemes raise inherent security, money-laundering, tax evasion and corruption risks for the Member State concerned and for the Union as a whole. The European Commission added that EU states that systematically offer citizenship in exchange for pre-determined payments and investments, without a genuine link, violates EU law.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – As Malta is considered by the Russia Federation as one of the “unfriendly” nations following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Maltese Prime Minsiter confirmed that the government is taking all the necessary precautions against cyberattacks.
“Maltàs IT agency is prepared for the eventuality of a cyberattack as the west is bracing itself for such attacks in retaliation to the sanctions imposed on Russia,” the Maltese Premier confirmed. Russia has significant cyber capabilities and the Russian regime has resorted to such attacks in the past.
Meanwhile, the Maltese Prime Minister Abela added that Malta is also preparing itself for the probable food and energy crisis as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
He reassured that Malta is well prepared for the expected increase in international food and energy prices as it had done in previous months to mitigate the increase in gas prices by subsidising utility bills, gas and fuel prices.
Abela also declared that his government will be taking an immediate action against Russian nationals with a Maltese passport on the international sanctions list. “At present no Maltese citizen features on the list,” however he added that “if Russians with a Maltese passport are included on the list Malta can revoke their citizenship.”
Later this week, Robert Abela will be flying to France to attend a summit called by the French presidency of the EU council, with the Labour leader saying that although Malta is in the middle of an electoral campaign “my first priority is to fulfil my duties as prime minister.”
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Financial Action Task Force confirmed that Malta has addressed or largely addressed the action plan at the technical level following the decision taken in June 2021 by the FATF to include Malta in its list of countries under enhanced monitoring referred as the “grey list”.
Malta is the first and only EU country listed in the grey-listed by the global anti-money laundering watchdog. In an action plan agreed with the FATF, Malta made a political commitment to focus its financial intelligence capabilities on tax evasion and money laundering and increase transparency on anonymous shell companies.
The FATF said that Malta has substantially completed its action plan and started implimenting anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing. Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela and Finance Minister Clyde Caruana said that a delegation of the Financial Action Task Force) will be visiting Malta to verify the action taken by the government in its attempts to be struck off the FATF’s grey list. The delegation is expected to visit Malta during the first half of the year. Abela said that the FATF will be able to see that Malta is taking the necessary steps to address its shortcomings, while the country remains cautious and works silently but surely to show it is a serious jurisdiction.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – A luxury yacht owned by Russian oligrach Maxim Shubarev, 59, entered Malta on Friday morning. Shubarev bought the Maltese citizenship in 2018. The Maltese government is under pressure for allowing the yacht with some 10 people onboard entering into the port of Valletta despite international sanctions on Russian oligarchs.

The Russian millionaire Maxim Shubarev bought his 70-metre superyacht registered in Malta last year. The Polaris sailed from Viareggio in Italy. However, Shubarev and his companies are not yet on the international list of sanctioned oligarchs and companies in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Shubarev is the chairman of Setl Group, a leading Russian construction and real estate company based in St Petersburg. His net worth is estimated at $500 million.

Shubarev is also a shareholder of Polaris Malta Ltd and Polaris Charter Ltd, two companies incorporated in 2016. The two companies’ registered addresses are in St Julian’s and Valletta.

He is also chairman of the committee on housing and civil engineering of Russiàs National Association of Construction Companies. In 2019, Shubarev was pictured with Russian president Vladimir Putin at a judo awards ceremony.

Since the beginning of the Russian war on Ukraine, a number of luxury yachts owned by Russian oligarchs have been seized in European countries. This week, France seized a yacht linked to Russian oil company Rosneft boss, Igor Sechin, in the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat. In the meantime, German authorities denied reports they had also seized the $600m superyacht belonging to Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – During these last two days, tens of Ukrainians arrived in Malta after they were forced to leave their country due to the Russian invasion. Heart broken relatives were waiting for their loved ones at the Malta International Airport.

Upon her arrival in Malta, an Ukrainian woman described the situation in her home country as horrible and the trauma caused by the fighting and waking up to explosions. She added that together with others fleeing the war stayed 12 hours on the border with Poland.

A 16 year old Ukrainian said that her brother has joined the army to fight the Russian forces invading the country and her relatives were left behind. She affirmed that the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a hero adding she feels so proud of the Ukrainian President and fighters defending the country. However she added “a lot of children are dying for nothing. A lot of children have become orphans.”

More Ukrainian refugees are expected to arrive next week. Maltese government officials confirmed that ten families of 30 people will arrive from Poland.

Meanwhile, non-governmental organizations have called for donations for needy Ukrainian families. The Ukrainian community has managed to collect large quantities of essential goods and items that will be sent to Ukraine in the coming days. Anna Syurma, who is the assistant of the Ukrainian Consulate in Malta, thanked the Maltese for their generosity towards the Ukrainian people. She said that medicines are the most crucial at the moment.

It is estimated that over one million people have been displaced by the Russian invasion.

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese government has caved in to pressure and demands from the European Union and the United States to stop the cash for passports scheme for Russian citizens.
Until Monday, Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela ignored calls by the Nationalist Opposition and the civil society to suspend the scheme for Russians, refused to divulge the names of Russians who have already acquired the Maltese citizenship through the cash for passport scheme and declared that the scheme is subject to thorough and strict procedures. But in less than 24 hours, a government’ statement said that due to “recent developments” – without mentioning the Russian invasion of Ukraine – the necessary due diligence process cannot be done in an effective manner. The government’s statement said that the Community Malta Agency and the Residency Malta Agency have suspended, until further notice, the processing of both Maltàs citizenship-by-investment scheme as well as a residency through investment scheme applications coming from nationals of the Russian Federation and Belarus.
The Maltese government said that the renewal of applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis and subject to fresh due diligence process.
The Maltese government said no beneficiaries or applicants to acquire the Maltese citizenship or residence are on the EU Sanctions List.
Meanwhile the members of the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association (MHRA) will be offering free accommodation covering the quarantine period required by law for Ukrainian asylum seekers. MHRA will also offer support to Ukrainian asylum seekers in finding jobs across the hospitality sector.
Meantime the Migrants Commission and the Archdiocese of Malta launched a humanitarian home-hosting initiative open to homeless migrants and refugees who have been forced to flee their countries like the Ukrainians.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews