Malta

The EU will face numerous challenges in 2017 "but the enlargement process will remain in focus when the EU presidency is assumed by Malta."

Moreover, Malta "will offer notable support to Serbia on its European path," a Belgrade conference was told on Tuesday.

A reconnaissance plane working for the French Defense Ministry crashed in a ball of flames at Malta's international airport on Oct. 24, killing all five people on board, three of them being French Defense Ministry officials.

The plane plummeted into the ground shortly after take-off, killing the five French nationals on board, officials said according to AFP.

A plane has crashed in Malta. At least five people have died, reported Reuters.

Initially, Times of Malta, citing its sources, said that this was a two-engine plane of the border agency Frontex en route to Libya. This type of plane can transport up to ten people.

Frontex reported later on Twitter that the plane was no sent by the agency.

"Have you seen Athena's helmet?" "No, but I've got Zeus' lightning bolt and cloak. I still can't find his hair!"

A meeting of ten presidents of parliamentary republics across the EU is to start in Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second-largest city, on Wednesday.

The migrant crisis is again expected to top the agenda alongside the challenges Europe is facing after Britain's decision to leave the EU.

Serbian national Srdjan Babic, who was arrested in Libya last year, has been released and is currently in Valletta, Malta.

Serbian national Srdjan Babic, who was arrested in Libya last year, has been released and is currently in Valletta, Malta.

When Malta takes over presidency of the EU early next year, "the working group for EU enlargement will hold a meeting in Belgrade."

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic made this announcement during a joint press conference in Belgrade over the weekend with Prime Minister of Malta Joseph Muscat.

If there was something that became obvious last week during the Malta Summit on Migration between the EU and African countries, it was that Europe is still in a deep policy dilemma over its migration problem. 

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, together with some European Heads of State, launched on November 12 the EU’s Emergency Trust Fund for stability and addressing root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons in Africa.

The European Union launched a fund for Africa on Nov. 12 with an initial $2 billion to combat the poverty and conflict driving migration to Europe, but African leaders said more fundamental economic change was needed.