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graphically, a "gate" refers to the
key entrances to the world's oceans
and control points along the way of
the major global shipping lanes. Ex–
amples of such sea gates are the Suez
Canal, the Strait of Gibraltar, Aden,
Malta, Singapore and the Panama
Canal.
In their rise to national promi–
nence, Britain and the United States
acquired control of almost every stra–
tegic land and sea gate in the world.
World War
n
hinged upon control of
these "gates," which kept open the
lanes of oceanic commerce to help
defeat the Axis powers.
Today, however, Britain has lost
most of those vital land and sea pas–
sages. This has happened because
God has withdrawn the blessings He
promised to Abraham's descendants.
Britain and America are now begin–
ning to suffer the curses God prom–
ised for disobedience. (See Leviticus
26 and Deutcronomy 28.)
Worst Possible Timing
The loss of Malta as a British and
NATO military base is more signifi–
cant than most people rea lize. Brit–
ain has left behind the Luqa airfield,
ah
important staging post for the
RAF's medium range transport. Also
gone is the marine surveillance
squadrOn, which kept track of most
of Russia's submarines in the Medi–
terranean.
But perhaps the worst blow fell
upon the Royal Navy. Malta was a
vital base for the protection of the
480 British merchant ships at sea in
the Mediterranean on any average
day.
British sea power, to the dismay of
officials at NATO's southern com–
mand headquarters in Naples, ltaly,
has now virtually disappeared from
the Mediterranean, once called a
" British lake. " Russian sea power is
replacing it.
These same officials believe that a
Soviet attack into Western Europe is
far more likely tooccur in NATO'ssoft
underbelly than against the well-de–
fended north German plain. (Malta,
after it withstood the Axis pounding.
served as a vital staging area for the
Allied invasion ofSicily and ltaly.)
The departure of the Royal Navy
from Malta and the Mediterranean,
The
PLAIN TRUTH September 1979
according to the NATO command–
ers, could not have come at a worse
time. The dispute between Greece
and Turkey over Ankara's invasion
of Cyprus in 1974 already had ripped
a giant hole in NATO's southern de–
fense perimeter. Since then, Greece
has pulled out of NATO's integrated
command, and Turkey has lapsed
into an economic morass.
Troubles - are brewing in North
· Africa as
well.~ibya,
according toa
report in London's
Daily Telegraph
of May 24, 1979, has offered the
Soviet fteet the use of port facilities
in Trípoli, Benghazi and Tobruk–
faci lities which the British handed
over to Qaddafi ten years ago. Scores
Wlde World
MERCURIAL PRIME MINISTER Dom
Mintoff hopes to steer a neutral course
for his strategic island nation.
of Russian MiGs are already parked
on former RAF air.bases in Libya.
The Red Navy desperately needs
bases in Libya, Tunisia, or Algeria–
or Malta- in order to compensate
for being thrown out of Egyptian
ports in 1975.
The Soviets are picking off former
British sea gates one by one. "The
lesson of Aden is noted," reported the
Daily Telegraph
of February 8, 1978.
"Shortly after the RAF and Royal
Navy evacuated their bases there [in
1967] the Russians moved in."
Russia 's Strategy
Western analysts know that the ulti–
mate Soviet objective is to cut the
vital sea lanes upon which the West-
ern world depends for its raw materi–
als.
Oil from the Persian Gulf is either
shipped through the Suez Canal or
around the African Cape. The So–
viets are al ready entrenched at stra–
tegic points along these shipping
Janes- the Horn of Africa, Aden,
Ethiopia, Mozambique and Angola.
Whoever controls these oil routes will
control the economic lifeblood of the
West. l f the Soviets had a base in
Malta, another strategic point along
the oil li feline would be under their
control.
Western Europe depends upon the
Middle East and North Africa for
sorne 80 percent of its oil. On any
given day, over 300 tankers carry 25
billion barreis of oil in various direc–
tions through the Mediterranean–
past roving Red Navy vessels.
General Sir Walter Walker, for–
mer NATO Commander-in-Chief of
the Allied Forces, described the po–
tential danger when he recently
wrote: "NATO and Europe depend
on their sea lines of communication
for their very survival, and unless
they can keep them open they wi ll
starve, and their industry and
fighting forces will grind to a stand–
sti ll"
(The Bear at the Back Door,
p. 200).
NATO must have a multinational
navy in order to be an effective deter–
rent in the Mediterranean. The loss
of British facilities on Malta will
.make that need all the more difficult
to fu lfi ll.
The Maltese people don't know
what their future will be like without
Britain's help. Despite their desire
for independence, the majoríty didn't
want the British to leave completely.
They distrust the Libyans and the
inftuence they are exerting. And they
are becoming ever more wary as they
see the Soviet navy steadily altering
the balance of power in the Mediter–
ranean.
On the night before their depar–
ture, British sailors and Maltese
wistfully sang together: "We shall
meet again, don't know where, don't
know how.... "
March 31st was truly asad day for
Malta, Britain and the Western
world- and another milestone along
the road of Bible prophecy.
o
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