Longstanding US-Malta security partnership celebrated

Last Saturday, 16 November, chargé d’affaires at the US embassy Mark A. Schapiro, along with representatives of the Naval Order of the United States, inaugurated a plaque commemorating the role of the USS Constitution in combating piracy during the Barbary Wars in the early 1800s.

During those operations, the USS Constitution operated out of Malta’s Grand Harbour and included many Maltese sailors among its crew.

The Naval Order of the United States, which coordinated the design of the commemorative plaque, was established in 1890 as a hereditary organisation in the United States for members of the American sea services. Its primary mission is to encourage research and writing on naval and maritime subjects and preserve documents, portraits, and other records of prominent figures, deeds and memories of American naval and maritime history.

The historic ties between the two countries date back to the American War of Independence when 1,800 Maltese and Knights of the Order fought with George Washington’s forces to help create the United States of America. In 1942 the US tanker SS Ohio limped into Malta’s harbour, just in time to support Malta in its struggle to resist the Axis siege. In 2011, the US government thanked the Maltese government for its assistance in evacuating US citizens during the revolution in Libya. More recently, the United States and Malta, in partnership with Italy, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt, established the Central Mediterranean Security Initiative to discuss ways of collectively addressing challenges and to provide a safe space to share concerns, investigations, and best practices that improve security in the region.

In his remarks, Schapiro said: “I am delighted to inaugurate this commemorative plaque that demonstrates the strength of our security partnership in the Mediterranean for over 200 years. With Malta as our partner in the crossroads of the Mediterranean, we are better able to confront the new and different threats that the 21st century presents.”