"Geography should never become a ceiling on people's ambition, on economic opportunity, or on Europe's commitment to fairness," said the Prime Minister of Malta, Robert Abela, in his address at the High-Level Conference "Strengthening EU Islands and Coastal Communities", taking place in Paphos on Friday. For his part, the Vice-President of the European Parliament, Younous Omarjee, described the occasion as a "historic moment," referring to the adoption of the Strategy for Islands and the the Strategy for Coastal Communities.