Vol. 443 No. 9
9 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Defence the total purchase of anti-personnel mines by the Defence Forces in each of the past five years; the purposes for which they are used; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
It is not the practice to disclose details regarding the purchase of equipment of this type. For the information of the House, however, I can state that a small quantity of anti-personnel mines, most of which were of a non-explosive type, was acquired once in the past five years. Their availability to the Defence Forces for training and familiarisation is essential in the context of overseas duties with the United Nations where military personnel may be called upon to locate and render harmless anti-personnel or other types of mines.
When I raised this matter on a previous occasion with the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs I was told these mines were not used by the Defence Forces. Will the Minister confirm that these mines are not part of the general equipment of our Defence Forces either for use in Ireland as a defensive mechanism or by our troops abroad on peace-keeping or peace enforcement operations?
I confirm that statement: Anti-personnel mines are not part of the paraphernalia of our Defence Forces.
