“We thought that invasions from other countries, brutal street fights and nuclear threats were dark memories of a distant past,” said the Argentine in the capital Valletta. The pope did not explicitly say who he meant by “the mighty”. In his public speeches, he has so far avoided citing Russia as an aggressor in the Ukraine war. During the flight to Malta, he discussed a trip to Kiev with a journalist. “It’s on the table,” the pope said when asked if he would consider inviting Ukrainian politicians for a visit.
Thousands of people cheered the Argentine on Saturday’s arrival. Large posters with the image of the Argentine were erected in the streets. In the predominantly Catholic country of Malta, Francis has the issues of migration and corruption that are important to the country on his agenda.
Francis criticized the way Europe deals with immigrants. “The widening of the migration emergency situation – just think of the refugees from tormented Ukraine – requires comprehensive and concerted responses,” the Pope demanded, saying: It is not possible for some countries to be burdened with the whole problem while other countries persisted in indifference. “The Mediterranean cannot become the biggest cemetery in Europe.”
Malta’s head of state, George Vella, promised to work on regulating migration: “We will continue to seek a humane, fair and just solution to unregulated migration.”
The country of about 500,000 has not only been dealing with the problem of corruption since the brutal murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017. She researched the subject before her death.
The country must be protected from “insatiable greed, greed and real estate speculation,” Francis said. The commitment to eliminate illegality and corruption must therefore be as strong “as the wind that blows from the north”, he also explained – in a reference to the countries of Europe.