VALLETTA, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) rescued a two-day-old infant and his mother from a boat on Saturday.

They were rescued 57 nautical miles south of Malta and they needed "medical assistance", the AFM said.

The infant and the 23-year-old mother were safely winched to the Air Wing Base and were taken to Mater Dei Hospital by ambulance.

According to local media Times of Malta, the infant was at Mater Dei Hospital in a "stable" condition.

That boat which had the infant was carrying 311 migrants off Malta, and AFM could not provide food to them due to the weather conditions, Times of Malta reported.

Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said in a tweet: "Ship calls an Italian port after the refusal of Malta (which rightly picked up a woman and a child). The Italian ports are closed! For the traffickers of human beings and for those who help them, it's over."

The Maltese government has not given any further comment.