Vienna, 30 June 2025 \u2013 On the occasion of the feast day of the Sovereign Order of Malta, H.E. DI Sebastian Prince of Schoenaich-Carolath, Ambassador of the Order to the Republic of Austria, hosted the traditional diplomatic reception at the St. Johanns Club in Vienna on 24 June 2025. In his speech, the Ambassador emphasised the Order’s special role as a subject of international law and as a humanitarian aid organisation \u2013 a combination that is becoming increasingly important in crisis regions around the world.<\/b><\/p>\n
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Since Sebastian Prince of Schoenaich-Carolath was accredited as Ambassador of the Order of Malta to the Republic of Austria in 2018, the global situation has dramatically worsened. Against this backdrop, the Order’s diplomatic mission is becoming increasingly important. At the reception on the feast day of the Order’s patron saint, St. John the Baptist, Prince von Schoenaich-Carolath emphasised how the Order’s diplomacy enables targeted humanitarian aid in crisis regions.<\/p>\n
He cited the Holy Family Hospital in Bethlehem as an outstanding example. Despite the tense situation in the Middle East, this modern maternity hospital in the West Bank is able to continue its work, with over 350 babies being born there every month. This is made possible by the Order’s trusting relationship with all political and religious groups in the region. The same principle applies, according to the Ambassador, to aid missions in Ukraine, Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, where close cooperation \u2013 for example with the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem \u2013 makes life-saving aid possible in the first place.<\/p>\n
\u2018In view of the incomprehensible humanitarian disasters, any help is ultimately too little,\u2019 the Ambassador admitted. \u2018But the Order of Malta will not waver in following the guiding principle of our founder: that there will always be people who work to alleviate suffering and make misery more bearable.\u2019<\/p>\n
Fra’ Gottfried K\u00fchnelt-Leddihn, Grand Prior of Austria, honored the Ambassador’s many years of commitment, particularly in the fight against Human Trafficking. He also emphasised that the Grand Priory of Austria is a driving force behind the Order’s international development. For example, the association in Slovakia was recently founded after years of Austrian support in establishing the necessary conditions. Ambassadors from the Grand Priory of Austria are also involved in establishing independent structures and effective aid organisations in Lithuania and Estonia. Independent associations are also to be established in these countries in the future.<\/p>\n
Numerous representatives of the Diplomatic Corps, high-ranking figures from the Church, led by the Apostolic Nuncio H.E. Archbishop Dr. Pedro L\u00f3pez Quintana, politics, the military and civil society, as well as members and supporters of the relief organisations of the Order of Malta in Austria and various other aid organisations, took advantage of the reception to exchange information informally. The Order thus once again sent a clear signal of the importance of its position under international law as a bridge between diplomacy and concrete humanitarian aid.<\/p>\n
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