Last week's visit by Cypriot Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides served to underline the advantages which small states like Malta and Cyprus stand to gain through membership of the European Union.

Mr Kasoulides told us that for his small, divided island-state, membership was a "natural choice" and that failure to be included in the next enlargement of the EU at this stage would be "catastrophic". The logic behind his reasoning was impeccable.

The Cypriot Foreign Minister was very careful not to involve himself in the local debate about EU membership, which the Opposition is against, preferring a "partnership" - a position which Mr Kasoulides said he "respected".

However it was quite obvious that Cyprus wished to see Malta join it in this grand, epoch-making project of European integration, now set to achieve its greatest expansion yet with up to ten countries to be included in the next enlargement in two years' time.

Significantly, Mr Kasoulides chose the title "Cyprus and Malta: parallel history and common future" for his lecture at the Aula Magna of the Old University in Valletta last Thursday.

The only two island-states in the Mediterranean share a chequered history of foreign occupation and wars; they were both British colonies which became independent in the early Sixties and have since been active members of the Commonwealth; both are economically dependent on exports, tourism and services. Both signed association agreements with the European Economic Community, as it was known then, Malta in 1970, Cyprus in 1972. Although Malta did not opt for a customs union with the EC, which Cyprus did in 1987, both islands applied for EU membership within a few days of each other in July, 1990.

Membership negotiations started with Cyprus in March 1998, with Malta - which had in the meantime, under a Labour government, 'frozen' its membership application - two years later. Today, both countries are among the front-runners for membership and hope to be included in the next enlargement due in early 2004.

There are a couple of major differences between the two countries, however. Cyprus has been physically divided by the Turkish military occupation of a third of its territory since 1974, yet the EU Helsinki summit in 1999 decided that accession could proceed even if the political problem caused by the island's partition has not been solved. Besides, all political parties in Cyprus (i.e. the Greek Cypriot, internationally-recognised part) are for EU membership.

In Malta, there are no ethnic divisions and still less military occupations, but our two main parties are divided over EU membership. Some say that the division is not that great, since the Labour Party leader has stated that one "never says never" and the party now is stressing that what it is after is "partnership" rather than membership, even though, ironically, the Maltese word for both terms is the same.

During his visit Mr Kasoulides went into the rationale of EU membership. His island is joining not only for economic benefit; in fact, Cyprus, whose purchasing power parity is 85 per cent of the EU average, will not qualify for regional and cohesion funds - and the island will be a net contributor to the EU from day one. (Malta, on the other hand, will qualify for EU funds, even after the admission of other candidate countries).

Cyprus, like other small nations, Mr Kasoulides told us, simply cannot afford to "go it alone" in this increasingly globalised world. EU membership is "a historic opportunity of unprecedented dimensions (which) will guarantee peace, stability, prosperity and security for all our citizens." The inclusion of Cyprus and Malta would strengthen the southern dimension of the Union and thus contribute towards peace and stability in the Mediterranean. Surely the Labour Party, with its vaunted belief in the island's role in this troubled sea, cannot overlook this important consideration.

In fact, Mr Kasoulides said accession will increase the importance of Cyprus as an active member of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (which the Labour Party supports). Membership was therefore "a natural choice" and "a logical decision" for Cyprus - and so it should be for Malta, we add.

A final consideration: the certain prospect of EU membership for Cyprus, divided as it is, has undoubtedly spurred foreign investment and economic growth, giving it one of the highest standards of living in the Mediterranean. It has also brought pressure on the Turkish Cypriots to find a solution to the island's division.

Conversely, uncertainty over Malta's prospective membership (thanks to the MLP's opposition) has acted as a disincentive to foreign investment and our economic growth. Malta's "common future" with Cyprus in the EU beckons!