Vol. 521 No. 3
10 Ms O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the matters discussed and any conclusions reached at the meeting of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council in Italy on 25 May 2000; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16843/00]
50 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on his recent attendance at the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC), the consultative forum for NATO and the Partnership for Peace. [16907/00]
60 Mr. Creed asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on the recent meeting of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council held in Florence, Italy. [16931/00]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 10, 50 and 60 together.
I attended the Foreign Ministers meeting of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, held in Florence on 25 May 2000. I also attended the official dinner held on 24 May.
The EAPC is the multilateral political framework for Partnership for Peace nations. The EAPC meets twice a year at the level of Foreign Ministers. The meeting on 25 May welcomed Croatia as the 46th member of the EAPC and the PfP. The meeting was significant, in particular, for the renewed active participation of Russia in the deliberations of the EAPC. I welcome Russia's new engagement in the work of the EAPC.
The theme of the Florence meeting was, Effective Use of EAPC/PfP in Conflict Prevention and in Crisis Management. A broad exchange of views took place which ranged across the work of the stability pact for south east Europe, the situation in the Balkans, and the growing activities and importance of EAPC and PfP. No formal conclusions were reached by the meeting.
In my intervention, I underlined PfP's importance as a framework for refining interoperability and capabilities for peacekeeping and crisis management. I welcomed the emphasis in EAPC on practical co-operation relating to the Kosovo and Bosnia situations, including peacekeeping issues regarding SFOR and KFOR in which Irish troops participate. Along with other non-NATO troop contributors to SFOR and KFOR, I look forward to progress on further developing consultation arrangements involving the troop contributors in the EAPC framework. I also expressed Ireland's particular support for the EAPC's ongoing work in the areas of conflict prevention, global humanitarian action against mines and the challenges posed by the transfer of small arms.
