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"I am not a criminal... I am a victim in this case," he wrote in a letter to the court's prosecutor last month, according to the AFP news agency.

It is the first time the relatives of an "absconder" have been charged under the territory's security law, Reuters news agency said.

The square was sealed off for several days before 1 May, according to AFP news agency.

However, an unnamed US source told the Reuters news agency that Washington "never confirmed" its participation in the fourth round of talks, nor had their timing been confirmed.

Malta has repeatedly insisted that it was correct in its interpretation of EU treaties, Reuters news agency reported.