The government decided to station soldiers outside ministry buildings “for security reasons”, National Security Minister Manuel Mallia explained in parliament this evening.

Dr Mallia was replying to a parliamentary question by the opposition’s home affairs spokesman and former minister Jason Azzopardi, who pointed out that no Armed Forces of Malta personnel had been stationed outside ministry buildings under the previous, PN-led government.

The minister, however, answered that the government took the decision to assign AFM soldiers to the entrance of ministry buildings to strengthen security, later pointing out that this measure helped create a safer environment for those who worked in these buildings as well as those who had to visit them. He did not specify any particular threats which the presence of the armed forces sought to address.

In a supplementary question, Dr Azzopardi questioned why the government did not opt for the less militaristic approach of assigning police officers to the ministry buildings instead.

In his reply, Dr Mallia suggested that this was mainly due to an understaffed police force: he pointed out that the police force had around 400 fewer officers than it should. He also emphasised that he felt that the soldiers were carrying out their duties admirably.