MALTA BY DANIEL OSULLIVAN

President : George Abela (2009) Prime minister : Lawerence Gonzi (2004) Total area : 124 sq mi (329 sq km) Population : 2010 est. :406,771 Birth rate : 10.3 /1000 Capital : Valletta Largest city : Birkirkara, 21,600 Language : Maltese and English Religion : Roman Catholic 98%

Map of Europe showing Malta Malta

Flag and National Anthem of Malta

Geography The five Maltese islands are : Malta, Gozo, Comino, Comminotto and Filfawith have a combined land area smaller than Philadelphia. Malta is located in the Mediterranean Sea about 97 km south of the southeast tip of Sicily.

History The strategic importance of Malta was recognized by the Phoenicians who occupied it, as did, in turn the Greeks, Carthaginians, and Romans. With division of the Roman Empire in A.D. 395, Malta was assigned to the eastern portion dominated by Constantinople.

Independence and EU Accession Malta suffered heavy attacks by German and Italian aircraft during World War II, but was never invaded by the Axis powers. Although Malta applied for membership in the European Union, the Labour Party, after winning the election in October 1996, froze Malta’s EU application and withdrew from the NATO Partnership for Peace program in an effort to maintain its neutrality. When the Nationalist Party won the September 1998 elections, however, it revived the EU accession bid, and in May 2004 Malta joined the EU.

World war II The Siege of Malta was a military campaign in the Mediterranean Theatre of the second World war. From , the fight for the control of the strategically important island of Malta pitted the air forces and navies of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany against the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy. The opening of a new front in North Africa in mid-1940 increased Malta's already considerable value.

World war II vehicles