The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion today expressed its deepest condolences to the family of Ambassador Alfred Zarb, who passed away at the age of 80.

Ambassador Zarb joined the civil service in 1960. In 1964, following Malta’s acquisition of independence, Ambassador Zarb was posted to New York to serve in Malta’s newly established Permanent Mission to the United Nations as part of Dr Arvid Pardo’s team. In the United States he assisted in the setting up of the Washington embassy, before returning to Malta in 1968. He was then posted to the new Permanent Delegation in Geneva between 1970 and 1975, and again as Chargé d’Affaires in 1977.

He served as Malta’s ambassador to Algeria and Morocco between 1981 and 1999, to Tunisia between 1981 and 1995, and was the country’s representative to the League of Arab States in Tunis between 1981 and 1986.

At the time of his death, he was serving as non-resident ambassador to Slovenia and Croatia, and as advisor to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion Carmelo Abela.

The Nationalist Party also expressed its condolences.