andMr. McQuillan asked the Minister for External Affairs whether, in view of his speech at UNO condemning the spread of nuclear weapons, the Government have reconsidered their refusal to accede to U Thant's request to undertake that in no circumstances would Ireland accept the placing of nuclear weapons on the national territory.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Nuclear Weapons on Irish Territory.
44.
There was no such request from the Secretary-General. The Minister for External Affairs has already explained our position in the matter in reply to Dáil questions on 28th March, 1962 and 23rd April, 1963. I believe, for the reasons given on those occasions, that we should continue to concentrate our efforts on securing the conclusion of the international agreement to prevent the further dissemination of nuclear weapons called for in the Irish Resolution No. 1665 (XVI) unanimously adopted by the General Assembly on the 5th December, 1961.
Is it not a fact that early in 1962 the Acting Secretary General wrote to the Irish Government inviting the Irish Government to pledge themselves not to receive nuclear weapons——
That is not correct.
——in other words, not to allow them here?
There was no such request.
Is it not a fact that the Minister for External Affairs said here in the Dáil the Government would not give the pledge that was asked of them by the Acting Secretary-General, that the Government's answer was: "Perhaps, under certain circumstances. We are not in a position to honour this pledge"; and therefore they would not sign the pledge. Is that not a fact?
No, it is not a fact. There was no such request.
I have here the folio to which the Minister for External Affairs referred on the previous occasion and in which we were asked by U Thant to refuse to receive nuclear weapons on our territory or on behalf of any other country and the Government replied they would not agree to that proposition.
There was no such request and no such reply.
The Taoiseach's statement in this regard is just as accurate as his statement in connection with NATO.
This is an extract from the folio kept in the Library of this House.
I refer the Deputy to the Dáil Debates of 28th March, 1962, in which the Minister for External Affairs dealt fully with this matter.
That is exactly what we are quoting.
I am quoting from that folio.
The Taoiseach went over to America and made a lot of nonsensical speeches about this issue while the Government here refuse to give a guarantee to the United Nations on this matter. The Taoiseach insisted on giving lectures to every country in the world about nuclear arms and nuclear defence but when his own Government were asked to give a pledge in this regard, they refused to give it.