John Deasy
Question:86 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on the role of Ireland's ambassador to NATO. [10025/03]
Written Answers. - Diplomatic Representation.
I refer the Deputy to my reply to a question of 5 March 2003 in which I informed the House that following the start of Ireland's participation in Partnership for Peace on 1 December 1999, the bilateral ambassador to Belgium was designated as head of a liaison mission between Ireland and NATO. This assignment was facilitated by the presentation document of Ireland for Partnership for Peace, approved by Dáil Éireann in November 1999, which provides for the appointment of representatives to the NATO headquarters in Brussels. The assignment of the bilateral Ambassador to Belgium to this role is in keeping with the practice of the other neutral and non-aligned participants in Partnership for Peace, namely Austria, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland.
While the overwhelming majority of the ambassador's time is taken up with his bilateral accreditation to Belgium, he has, over the past twelve months, in his capacity as head of the liaison mission to NATO, continued to represent Ireland at ambassadorial level meetings of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, the multilateral political framework for Partnership for Peace countries. As the senior official in Brussels dealing with Partnership for Peace and Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council issues, he oversees on an ongoing basis the work of the liaison mission, which comprises staff from the Departments of Foreign Affairs and Defence, as well as from the Defence Forces.