Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 4 Dec 2001

Vol. 545 No. 4

Written Answers. - Overseas Missions.

Austin Deasy

Question:

55 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Defence if the Government has given commitments to have Defence Forces personnel assigned to troublespots in the world; if requests have been received from the United Nations for further duties for the Defence Forces; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30243/01]

Ivor Callely

Question:

73 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Defence the Defence Forces policy to assist and participate in overseas humanitarian, peacekeeping and peacemaking missions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30251/01]

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

77 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Defence the extent of the commitment of the Defence Forces overseas under the auspices of the United Nations; if he anticipates new deployments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30617/01]

Trevor Sargent

Question:

157 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Defence the numbers of Irish military personnel now serving abroad; the locations they are serving; and the capacity in which they are serving. [30247/01]

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

165 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Defence the number of countries in which members of the Irish Defence Forces are involved in peacekeeping operations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30878/01]

Minister for Defence (Mr. M. Smith)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 55, 73, 77, 157 and 165 together.

With the deployment tomorrow of the main body – 154 personnel – of the Defence Forces contingent to serve with the United Nations Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea, UNMEE, the total number of Defence Forces personnel serving overseas will be 505. Full details are set out in the form of a tabular statement which I propose to circulate in the Official Report.

Requests for personnel of the Defence Forces to serve on overseas missions are considered on their merits in the prevailing circumstances within the context of the United Nations Stand-by Arrangements System, UNSAS. As I have indicated to the House previously, in October 1998 Ireland signed a memorandum of understanding with the United Nations in relation to UNSAS. Ireland has committed up to 850 military personnel for overseas service at any one time under this system. There would, however, be no obligation to participate in any particular mission and Dáil approval would be required for the dispatch of a contingent to a specific operation. The decision to participate in UNSAS is a tangible expression of Ireland's continuing commitment to involvement in peacekeeping operations.

On 15 June 2001, in the context of the withdrawal of the Irish contingent from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL, the UN formally invited Ireland to contribute a guard and administration company to serve with UNMEE at the force headquarters in Asmara, Eritrea, with effect from 11 December 2001, for a minimum period of 12 months.

On 18 July 2001, the Government subject to the approval of the Dáil authorised the dispatch of a contingent of the Permanent Defence Force for service with UNMEE for a period of one year from December 2001. On 26 October 2001, Dáil Éireann approved the dispatch of the contingent which will comprise 209 Defence Forces personnel. An advance party was deployed to the mission area on 26 November 2001. The main body of the contingent will, as I have stated, be deployed tomorrow. The contingent is required to become operational on 11 December 2001.

I agreed, at the UN's request, to the deployment of two officers of the Defence Forces in June 2001, as military liaison officers, to the UN peace support operation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo-MONUC.

Increasingly, in the case of peace support operations, humanitarian tasks go hand in hand with military tasks. I am pleased that the Defence Forces have embraced this aspect with willingness and enthusiasm and the fruits of their endeavours can be seen in Lebanon in the orphanage at Tibnin; in Sarajevo, where they undertook the reconstruction of homes which had been burnt out in the conflict, and in East Timor as a result of their involvement with a local school. I envisage a humanitarian dimension to the Defence Forces involvement with UNMEE also and my Department is in contact with the Department of Foreign Affairs in this regard.

In addition, from time to time members of the Defence Forces avail of special leave, on an unpaid basis, in order to work in a personal capacity with various non governmental organisations overseas.

Members of the Permanent Defence Force serving overseas with effect from 5 December 2001

1	UN Missions
	(i)	UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon	11
	(ii)	UNTSO (United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation) – Israel, Syria and Lebanon	11
	(iii)	UNFICYP (United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus)	5
	(iv)	UNIKOM (United Nations Iraq Kuwait Observer Mission)	7
	(v)	MINURSO (United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara)	3
	(vi)	UNMIK (United Nations Interim Administrative Mission in Kosovo)	3
	(vii)	UNMOP (United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka)	2
	(viii)	UNTAET (United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor)	44
	(ix)	UNMEE (United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea)	220
	(x)	MONUC (United Nations Mission in Democratic Republic of the Congo)	2
	UN Mandated Missions
	(ix)	SFOR Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and HerzegovinaSFOR HQ Sarajevo	55
	(x)	KFOR International Security Presence in Kosovo	102
		Total number of personnel serving with UN missions	465
2	EU Missions
		European Union Monitor Mission (EUMM) to the former Yugoslavia	11
3	Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)
	(i)	OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina	7
	(ii)	OSCE Mission in Croatia	2
	(iii)	OSCE Mission in Kosovo	1
	(iv)	OSCE Presence in Albania	1
	(v)	OSCE Mission in FRY	1
	(vi)	OSCE Mission in Macedonia	2
	(vii)	Staff Officer, Higher Level Planning Group, Vienna	1
		Total OSCE Missions	15

4	Head of Military Staff (Brussels)	1
5	EU Military Staff (Brussels)	4
6	Liaison Office of Ireland, PfP (Brussels)	3
7	Irish Embassy Staff (Brussels)	2

8	(i)	Military Advisers, Permanent Mission to UNHQ, New York	1
	(ii)	Asst. Military Adviser, Permanent Mission to UNHQ, New York	1
	(iii)	Military Adviser, Irish Delegation to OSCE, Vienna	1
	(iv)	Military Representative to Partnership Coordination Cell/Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), Mons, Belgium	1
		Total number of Defence Forces personnel serving overseas	505

Question No. 56 answered with Question No. 52.