Ambassador Saviour F. Borg presented his credentials to the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki Moon, as the new Permanent Representative of Malta to the United Nations in New York.

Following the presentation ceremony, the UN Secretary-General met briefly with Ambassador Borg. The Secretary-General extended his congratulations to Ambassador Borg on his appointment, highlighting Ambassador Borg’s impressive diplomatic career and experience, including in particular his previous assignment in Geneva, where he served as Malta’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, its specialised agencies and other international organisations in Geneva, and, as his country’s ambassador to China, Japan, Republic of Korea and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The UN Secretary-General said he was pleased that Ambassador Borg had served as his country’s ambassador to the Republic of Korea.

Ambassador Borg, while thanking the UN Secretary-General, said he was highly honoured that he had been appointed as the representative of a country that strongly believed in the principles and objectives of the United Nations and which recognised the organisation as one with a truly effective multilateral dimension. In this context, Ambassador Borg congratulated the Secretary-General and the United Nations for the efforts made to launch humanitarian assistance activities in Darfur. Mr Ban Ki Moon thanked Ambassador Borg for this expression of Malta’s support.

Ambassador Borg also took the opportunity to highlight Malta’s past initiatives at the United Nations, including those on the law of the sea and climate change. He also mentioned the important role played and the contribution made by Malta in efforts to strengthen peace, security and cooperation in the Mediterranean region. Ambassador Borg concluded by saying that as an EU member state, Malta would continue to give its full support to the United Nations in its important mission.

During the meeting with the UN Secretary-General, besides Hector Bonavia, Deputy Permanent Representative and Walter Mallia, First Secretary at the Malta Mission, were the Under-Secretary-General for the Department for Political Affairs, Lynn Pascoe, and Muhamaad Shaaban, Under-Secretary-General for the Department for General Assembly Conference Management.