Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 20 Mar 2024

Vol. 1051 No. 3

Pre-European Council Meeting: Statements

The Taoiseach

I will participate in the March meeting of the European Council in Brussels tomorrow and Friday. The agenda will cover Ukraine, security and defence, the Middle East, enlargement, migration, agriculture and the European semester. There will be a discussion on specific foreign policy issues, including the death of Alexei Navalny and the situation in Belarus. Leaders will take stock of preparations for the new strategic agenda 2024-2029. I will also participate in a Euro summit, scheduled for Friday, and leaders will mark the 30th anniversary of the European Economic Area agreement with the Prime Ministers of Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. In my statement, I will cover Ukraine, Russia, security and defence, the situation in the Middle East, agriculture and the strategic agenda.

Our discussions will start with a working lunch on Thursday with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres. I expect that he will take the opportunity to raise the desperate situation in Gaza, where the work of an adequately funded UNRWA is needed more urgently than ever. I will make clear Ireland’s full support for the indispensable role of the United Nations as part of a rules-based international order.

In our meeting proper, we will take stock of the situation in Ukraine, as we face into the third year of war. It is an opportunity to restate our unwavering support for Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity and to make it clear that we will continue to stand with the brave people of Ukraine for as long as it takes. Russia’s imperial war is existential for Ukraine but is also fundamental for European and global security. If he is successful in Ukraine, we know that Putin will not stop there. Since February 2022, the European Union has provided unprecedented political, financial, humanitarian, military and diplomatic assistance. This must continue. At the European Council, leaders will consider how to speed up procurement and delivery of the equipment Ukraine so urgently needs. I very much welcome the recent agreement on the Ukraine Assistance Fund, which will sit within the European Peace Facility. It will make an additional €5 billion available for vitally needed equipment for Ukraine. Ireland's contribution under this mechanism will continue to be non-lethal, given our policy of military neutrality.

While the EU continues to assist Ukraine, we must also hold Russia to account. The recent adoption of the 13th package of EU sanctions against Russia is very welcome. We must continue to work together to close loopholes and prevent circumvention. Leaders will also reiterate calls for sanctions to be prepared against Belarus, North Korea and Iran for their role in bolstering Russia’s efforts. Work is progressing on the implementation of the recent agreement at EU level to set aside the revenue generated from the immobilised assets of the Central Bank of Russia to help Ukraine. These funds should contribute to the repair and reconstruction of Ukraine. Russia must also be held accountable for its human rights violations and the illegal elections it has been holding in Ukrainian regions, as well as for the crime of waging a war of aggression. Work is ongoing to establish a tribunal for the prosecution of that crime.

Ukraine’s future is in Europe and we expect to consider next steps for EU enlargement negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova. Progressing work on EU accession sends an important signal of hope for a brighter future to the Ukrainian people. It is also an important signal to Moldova, whose people also face destabilising activities on the part of Russia.

President Putin is a dictator as well as an aggressor. I was appalled at the sudden and unexpected death of prominent Russian opposition politician and anti-corruption activist, Alexei Navalny. While President Putin lives on into old age, it would appear his opponents die young. At our meeting, leaders will discuss the need for a full and transparent international investigation into the circumstances of his death. Ireland, along with our EU partners, has stated clearly that the responsibility for Mr. Navalny's death lies with Vladimir Putin. His death is a reminder of the oppressive nature of the regime that Putin presides over. The European Council will welcome new sanctions against Russia for its serious human rights violations.

Security and defence issues are increasingly at the very top of the EU political agenda. Earlier this month, the European Commission published a new European defence industrial strategy, along with a regulatory proposal for a European defence industry programme. While defence remains a national competence, these proposals aim to stimulate production and joint procurement and to allow the EU both to aid Ukraine and develop further its industrial base.

For Ireland, it will be important to engage maturely and constructively in these discussions. Our policy of military neutrality does not remove us from the global security environment or mean we should not work closely with our fellow EU member states to overcome these challenges. We should also identify the potential benefits to Ireland of the European Commission's proposals, particularly as we increase investment in the Irish Defence Forces. There also may be scope to identify opportunities for Irish industry and research institutions. At tomorrow's meeting, leaders will consider how to strengthen the European defence technological and industrial base across the Union through better co-operation, improved access to finance, the provision of opportunities for SMEs and combating labour and skills shortages.

Leaders will also return to the grave situation in Gaza. I will continue to press the urgent need for an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of hostages, a massive scale-up in humanitarian assistance and a process that can lead to a peaceful and sovereign Israel and Palestine living side by side. In my recent speech in Boston, I was unambiguous that civilians in Gaza cannot be subject to collective punishment for the appalling crimes of Hamas. This is a message I also brought to the White House, to Congress and to meetings with the US Administration last week. I will reiterate it to my European partners tomorrow and on Friday. We must demand the immediate and unconditional release of hostages. The EU must be robust and consistent in underlining that international law applies in all conflicts and to all parties, state actors and non-state actors alike. This includes Hamas and other terrorist Palestinian groups.

We should continue to emphasise the importance of all parties adhering to international humanitarian law and of the protection of civilians and aid workers. UNWRA alone has tragically seen more than 140 staff members killed in Gaza since 7 October, which is almost twice the total number of all UN staff killed worldwide in 2022. This cannot be accepted or normalised in any way. UNRWA remains the essential backbone of any humanitarian response in Gaza. The decision of the European Commission to release €50 million in funding to UNRWA, with a further €32 million to follow, is very welcome. The international community must stand up for UNRWA. All those who have paused funding should resume it and all states, including Israel, should cooperate fully with the UN investigation into allegations of the involvement of a number of UNRWA staff in the 7 October attacks in Israel. At the European Council, I will urge all of our European partners that have suspended aid to UNRWA to immediately reinstate their funding. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is desperate with famine now imminent. The European Council must urge and assist all efforts to scale up the delivery of aid by road as well as by sea and air. Crucially, Israel should not launch a ground offensive in Rafah, where more than 1 million people have fled for safety and to access humanitarian assistance.

We should also remember the situation in the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory, in the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. The increase in settler violence and the construction of new settlements is alarming and it is incumbent upon the EU to combat these extremist actions. I hope that leaders will be able to agree measures to hold accountable those responsible for violent actions against innocent civilians in the occupied West Bank. Now is the time for us to send a strong signal of sustained and increased political solidarity to the Palestinian Authority and to the Palestinian people. This is important to ensure the EU is a credible actor in any future peace process. Ireland stands ready to recognise a Palestinian state with partners when it can contribute to progress. I expect to discuss this with like-minded partners in the margins of the meeting.

Following a discussion at the special European Council meeting in February and the meeting of the AGRIFISH Council on 26 February, leaders will take stock of the measures taken to deal with the major concerns and challenges in the agricultural sector. The European agricultural sector is under stress and it is important we act quickly to respond to the urgent needs of our farmers and rural areas. The European Green Deal and Fit for 55 package are necessary but there must be practical and innovative solutions to assist agriculture and rural communities and to work collaboratively with farmers. To effectively manage the issues in the sector, we must maintain our focus on an effective CAP which endorses sustainable food production for all our citizens, with farmers firmly at the centre. It is important that all European policies are coherent and they must understand and respect the important role of farmers. Food security and affordable food for our citizens should not be taken for granted.

At our meeting, leaders will take stock of preparations for the new EU strategic agenda for the period from 2024 to 2029. The strategic agenda will set out priorities for the years ahead in the areas of EU external relations, security and defence, energy challenges, our economic and social base, migration and the protection and promotion of EU values. I expect that the principal discussion on this matter will take place at the special European Council meeting in April, alongside consideration of whether internal EU reforms are necessary, particularly to accommodate enlargement. The European Council expects to conclude work on the strategic agenda in June.

In his remarks later, the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, will consider the priorities for the 2024 European semester and the future of the capital markets union, the Euro Summit, enlargement, Bosnia and Herzegovina, migration, other foreign policy issues and Belarus. I will update the House again in April following this week’s meeting of the European Council.

Deputy Matt Carthy

On a personal level, I will take this opportunity to wish the Taoiseach well following his announcement earlier.

As the European Council prepares to meet tomorrow, the people of Gaza face horrifying levels of hunger and an imminent famine. A report compiled by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification describes this chapter of an ever-escalating human catastrophe as a man-made starvation and warns that 1.1 million people, half of Gaza's population, are at grave risk. The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has said that more than 1 million people have completely exhausted their food supplies and are facing catastrophic hunger. This is the highest number of people facing starvation at any time anywhere in the world since the classification system was introduced more than two decades ago. I will read a quote:

People in Gaza are starving to death right now. The speed at which this man-made hunger and malnutrition crisis has ripped through Gaza is terrifying. There is a very small window left to prevent an outright famine and to do that we need immediate and full access to the north. If we wait until famine has been declared, it’s too late. Thousands more will be dead.

Those are the harrowing words of the World Food Programme executive director, Cindy McCain. Those words lay out in very simple and clear terms what is now at stake. Having endured 165 days of genocide, slaughter, displacement, dispossession and witnessing their sons, daughters, mothers and fathers annihilated in their thousands, the people of Gaza now face disastrous famine and disease. UNICEF has warned that Gazan children are now dying a slow death due to hunger. Those Palestinians in Gaza who Israel has not managed to murder through gunfire, tank fire or air raid, it now seeks to extinguish through starvation. Israel is literally using starvation as a weapon of war.

Oxfam has highlighted the cruelty of Israel's approach. On Monday, it stated that Israeli forces were preventing a warehouse full of international aid from reaching starving people in Gaza. They are also blocking key aid co-ordinators from UNRWA from entering the strip to get to work improving the humanitarian response on the ground.

The catastrophe of famine facing the people of Gaza underscores the need for an immediate, full and permanent ceasefire. Of course, the people of Gaza need humanitarian aid. They urgently need food, water, medical supplies and clothing. However, the only thing that will transform this horrific situation is a ceasefire and an end to the slaughter. Even as the spectre of famine stalks Gaza, Israel continued its relentless bombardment, launching airstrikes on the city of Rafah, the place to which hundreds of thousands of Gazans were forcefully displaced in the wake of Israel's initial onslaught. There is nowhere left for people to flee. There is nowhere left to go. They are trapped and yet Netanyahu and his regime state that they are determined to go through with a ground offensive in the city. There will be no real evacuation of these Palestinians, no protective corridors and no safe zones. The world absolutely knows what will happen to the people of Rafah should Israel launch a ground assault. There is no need for prediction or prophecy.

Over the past six months, Mr. Netanyahu and his army have shown us exactly what will happen: slaughter, destitution and genocide. What has been inflicted on the people of Gaza has been inflicted before the eyes of Europe and the world. It is atrocity layered upon atrocity. It is the greatest human rights violation of our time, yet it appears that worse is to come as famine approaches and as Israel weighs up a ground invasion of Rafah. Europe must now take a stand and defend the values that it claims to cherish such as human dignity, freedom and justice. Europe must lay out how it will effectively respond to treat the mass starvation in Gaza, what role it will play to stop Israel's planned invasion of Rafah and how it will help to bring this genocide to an end. Peace is the only way this can be done. Peace must now be the collective will of the international community and the path to peace can only be forged through an immediate and full ceasefire. I put it to the Taoiseach and Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, that this will only be brought about by meaningful action. Today the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach is discussing Deputy John Brady's Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill 2023, which contains a meaningful action to withdraw Irish taxpayers' money from investing in companies that profit from Israel's illegal settlements. We have before this House the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill, which is another meaningful action that could be taken. Both Houses of the Oireachtas have voted to call on the Government to recognise the state of Palestine and have proposed meaningful actions that could be taken, none of which has been taken despite the fact that each could be taken unilaterally by this Government.

The Taoiseach referred to the EU-Israel Association Agreement and his letter, alongside Prime Minister Sánchez of Spain, to the European Commission requesting a review of that agreement. Essentially the answer from the Government is that they have made the request and other member states have decided not to accept our premise and, therefore, we shrug the shoulders and Europe does nothing. I believe that a message needs to be brought very clearly to the European Council this week.

I agree with the Taoiseach's assessment in respect of Ukraine and I agree with his analysis of Russia under the Putin regime but the greatest incentive and the greatest succour for Putin and his allies is any inclination that Europe is equivocal on adherence to international law. The truth is there is a stark and gross equivocation on the part of the European response to the illegal actions by Russia in Ukraine to that of the illegal actions of Israel in Gaza. Unless there is an equivalence, a consistency and an equal application of sanctions against those regimes that engage in brutal oppression of their neighbouring states, I fear the message will be lost on all bar those brutal dictators such as Putin and Netanyahu.

This is an opportunity for Europe to act. This is a time for the EU to state very clearly whether it is actually on the side of human rights, of human dignity and of adherence to international law. I hope that Europe soon takes the right course because it is very much off course at the moment. The European project could endure long lasting, if not permanent, damage to its credibility on these areas if that course is not changed quickly.

Deputy Brendan Howlin

I too will take this opportunity to wish the Taoiseach well on foot of his announcement today. I had the privilege of working with him in government. Everybody in this House who is called to public service approaches the call to serve this nation to the best of their ability. Whatever is in the future for the Taoiseach, I wish him well.

The ongoing horror of Gaza continues on an hourly basis in the slaughter of men women and children. In his invitation letter to the EU leaders for tomorrow's Council meeting, President Charles Michel states: "The atrocities of the October 7th attacks and the ensuing war in Gaza have crossed the brink of inhumanity." The Council president describes the "catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and raging famine." The world and we in Europe are not just commentators on one of the greatest humanitarian tragedies of our age, we have become active agents to bring about a halt to the killing.

I commend the comments of the Taoiseach in the United States last week coming in tandem with the remarks of Senator Chuck Schumer, a long-standing ally of Israel. I hope they had an impact in the US but I feel they will have no impact on the Netanyahu government. This week Europe must do more. Even the most ardent supporters of Israel know that the nation's onslaught against the entire population of Gaza is a crime against humanity that will stain Israel for generations to come. Europe must be clear and unambiguous that if the threatened assault on Rafah actually takes place - and hourly it is threatened again by the leader of the current Israeli Government - Israel will be a pariah nation in the eyes of the civilised world. I hope that this week the European Council takes an unequivocal and clear stand, demands that no such assault happens, and demands an instant call to peace and an end to hostilities.

I want to make mention of security and defence. Again I refer to President Michel's invitation letter to the leaders of governments for tomorrow's Council. In the invitation letter, he states:

This is also a time for a real paradigm shift in relation to our security and defence. For decades, Europe has not invested enough in its security and defence. Now that we are facing the biggest security threat since the Second World War, it is high time we take radical and concrete steps to be defence-ready and put the EU’s economy on a “war footing".

What will be the Taoiseach's response to that? Both Finland and Sweden have left our neutrals' club and joined NATO. What is the Taoiseach's strategy for setting out Ireland's position on the very clear militarisation the rest of Europe is engaged upon? What pressures does the Taoiseach expect to be exerted on us? Clearly, Ireland has limited military capacity to be of strategic value in a purely military sense but what is the role of neutral Ireland that will be explained to our partners by the Taoiseach? It is imperative that we enunciate effectively and clearly what our neutrality means. I am afraid that I am not heartened by the Taoiseach's remarks when he spoke of the new European defence industrial strategy and a new European defence industry programme for Ireland. He said: "It will be important to engage maturely and constructively in these discussions." I am not sure what that means. He went on to remark on the opportunities for us to exploit saying, "There may also be scope to identify opportunities for Irish industry and research institutions." This is a time for clarity around Ireland's role into the future and I hope he will explain in very clear terms what Irish neutrality means and how it will fit in with this new European agenda.

Deputy Seán Haughey

The terrible events taking place in Gaza continue to dominate the international political agenda. It is clear that we need an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid to Gaza and negotiations to commence on a long-term sustainable two-state solution in the region. We are aware that aid agencies are warning of an imminent famine in the region affecting the entire population of Gaza. It has to be said that this was an inevitable outcome given the actions of Israel since the brutal Hamas attacks last October.

The international community, including the EU and the US, have been too slow to face up to this humanitarian catastrophe. Better late than never but at least something is now being done. As we know, the EU has been found wanting as regards this conflict and in respect of other foreign policy matters.

The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell continues to be a voice of reason in all of this. He has spoken about how Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war. President Higgins has said something similar. The EU at least has opened up a humanitarian corridor to Gaza from Cyprus. It has also decided to allocate €50 million to UNRWA, although why it initially suspended funding to UNRWA is hard to understand. Thankfully, Canada and Sweden have decided to resume funding of the agency. Humanitarian aid must get into Gaza in volume and at pace by land, sea and air. The US is planning to build a port to ship in vital aid. Jordan, with other countries, is conducting air drops. All of this is not enough. It is clear that Israel is not facilitating the delivery of this aid and that it is not acting in good faith in this regard. The most effective way to get aid in would be via land crossings. Israel must open up these land crossings.

The Taoiseach delivered a strong message on these issues when he was in Washington last week for the St. Patrick's Day celebrations. The change in tone from the US Administration has to be welcomed. President Biden agreed with the Taoiseach's comments on the need for a humanitarian ceasefire but there has been no change in the policy of supplying arms to Israel. We have to hope that Antony Blinken's current visit to the Middle East will yield some positive outcome, as well as the visit next week of Israeli officials to the White House to consider the Israeli intention to conduct a ground assault on Rafah. Of course, this ground assault by Israel troops should not happen. The first casualty of war is the truth and this is certainly true in this case. Nobody can believe what the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israel Defense Forces are saying about these terrible events. They say they are trying to minimise civilian casualties and that they are not stalling food and medicine deliveries. This simply cannot be true and we cannot be expected to believe it.

What about a long-term sustainable deal based on a two-state solution? The international community will have a major role to play in this regard, including the US and Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Qatar. What is clear is that there is no role for Hamas in such a long-term solution given its stated intention to destroy Israel. Similarly, it is very difficult to see any role for the current Israeli Government under Benjamin Netanyahu. The recent remarks by US Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer are very relevant. He severely criticised Netanyahu and called for a general election in Israel. Benjamin Netanyahu is not a democrat as we have seen from his efforts to throw out democratic norms prior to the 7 October attacks. He is deeply unpopular in Israel anyway. Much work needs to be done but the most immediate issue is to get a humanitarian ceasefire in place and get much-needed aid into Gaza. I hope EU leaders at their forthcoming summit can agree on that much at least.

Sadly, the situation in Ukraine is as protracted as ever. The EU has provided approximately €88 billion in financial, humanitarian, emergency, budgetary and military support to Ukraine to date. Ireland has also given bilateral support through stabilisation and humanitarian mechanisms. This is as it should be. In addition, the EU recently decided to provide €5 billion for military aid to Ukraine through an overhauled European Peace facility. I welcome the Taoiseach's comments earlier in the debate that due to our policy of military neutrality the assistance that we will provide will be non-lethal assistance.

Like Deputy Howlin, I was very interested in the Taoiseach's comments on security and defence and how the European Commission has established a European defence industrial strategy and a European defence industry programme. We need to hear more about this in due course and have a discussion about it. What will Ireland's role be on these issues? What about the prospects for a peace deal in Ukraine? President Putin continues to threaten nuclear war while Pope Francis has called for negotiations to commence. There have been reports of various initiatives in this regard from various countries. Such a deal would have to include provisions on territorial claims and NATO membership. It has to be said clearly that any proposed deal would have to be acceptable to Ukraine in the first instance. I would like to think that Ireland can play some role in bringing about a final peace settlement.

The EU has agreed a thirteenth round of sanctions on Russia. The US is also imposing additional sanctions. I wonder whether these sanctions are having the desired effect. The EU sanctions envoy David O'Sullivan is examining the circumvention of sanctions via third countries to try to stop battlefield goods and technology assisting the Russian war effort. I hope he is making some progress in this regard.

I want to mention the EU pact on migration and asylum. Ireland must decide on whether to opt into these measures. What is clear, however, is that we cannot deal with this issue on our own given the globalised and interdependent world in which we live. We should consider opting into this pact for this reason. I await a report from the Minister for Justice on this to outline the pros and cons of whether we should sign up to these measures. Migration is a major issue throughout the EU and it will be shown to be so in the forthcoming European Parliament elections.

Deputy Mairéad Farrell

"We're seeing mass starvation now and famine before our very eyes...I think we, as humanity, need to look at ourselves in horror and dismay" These are the words of South Africa's foreign minister Naledi Pandor. Gaza is at the brink of famine. António Guterres has rightly said that such a famine would be entirely man-made. The people whom Israel has not managed to kill through its indiscriminate bombing and destruction of hospitals and basic infrastructure, it is now hoping to kill by starvation. We watched in horror as Israeli troops fired and killed more than 100 Palestinians and injured more than 750 as they tried to get food for their families. Watching in horror is not enough. We need the world to end this genocide.

This Parliament has long called for a ceasefire. The Irish people have been clear in their calls for a ceasefire and an end to this genocide. We need the international community to step up to the mark on this. We need to use our voice at the European Council to give voice to the Palestinians, to the more than 30,000 people who have been killed, and to all those doing their absolute best to survive.

We must tell our EU counterparts that remaining silent during a genocide is shameful and that history will judge them. They must intervene now for peace and for a full and immediate ceasefire.

Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú

The credibility of the EU is at stake. There are more than 31,000 dead, 70% of them women or children, and 72,000 injured. These are just the figures we have at the minute – we do not know what they will increase to. António Guterres is right when he speaks about people facing catastrophic hunger, and that is even before the awaited ground invasion of Rafah. What would one expect from Netanyahu’s supremacist Israeli Government? It has told us what it is for. It has told us that it is absolutely against a Palestinian state. On some level, I think it is at times against the Palestinian people and even against the existence of the Palestinian people.

It is not the first time that slaughter and starvation have been used by supremacist regimes, but it is the first time I have seen it to this degree live on television. What are we doing about it? We all welcomed how, alongside Pedro Sánchez, the Taoiseach wrote to Ursula von der Leyen, but I have seen no moves to review the EU-Israel agreement and its humanitarian conditions. If Israel has not breached them, they must be the funniest humanitarian conditions of all time. Unfortunately, this is not that funny.

We have another European Council meeting. As weak and late as it would be, are we going to call for a ceasefire? Are we going to talk to some of our European neighbours? The likes of Germany and others have not only provided Israel political support, but also sold it weapons. Pressure must be maintained on America, but also on others.

What can we do? The finance committee is undertaking pre-legislative scrutiny of the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill 2023. We can ensure that no Irish State money is involved in any company that benefits from illegal Israeli settlements. There is also the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018. We need to move on recognising the state of Palestine and see what takers we have.

An Cathaoirleach Gníomhach (Deputy Marc Ó Cathasaigh)

I thank the Deputy.

Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú

Has there been any movement among those who would join us? We need answers.

An Cathaoirleach Gníomhach (Deputy Marc Ó Cathasaigh)

The Deputy is well over time.

Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú

The EU needs to take action. It is failing miserably.

Deputy Gary Gannon

There was a time when I could proudly refer to the EU as a peace project. I can no longer refer to it in such terms. There has been a degree of apathy among some nations. I do not hold us accountable for that. We have stood out because the bar was so low. Given that what is happening has already met the standard of a genocide and a famine is approaching, how can this week’s European Council meeting have almost the same agenda as the one in January? At the end of January when reflecting on the December European Council meeting, we lamented the post-Council conclusions and how they were divorced from the reality on the ground in Gaza. They condemned Hamas in the strongest terms and recognised Israel’s right to defend itself in line with international law. Only thirdly did the conclusions express the European Council’s grave concerns about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, as if it were happening due to some freak of nature. Today is 20 March, and here are the priorities listed for this month’s Council meeting. Once again, it condemns Hamas first. Second, the Council will recognise Israel’s right to defend itself in accordance with international law. Third, it will once again acknowledge the grave concerns about the situation in Gaza. This is a deplorable abdication of responsibility when one considers the horror being inflicted – and it is being inflicted – by the State of Israel on people in Gaza. The exact same conclusions from January, relating to December’s meeting, are now being put forward in March.

The EU and its leaders are choosing to turn their backs on one of the most horrific events in recent memory. It is difficult to say that someone chooses to turn his or her back, but I use that language purposely. What else can we take from the fact that there is still almost a refusal to find a consensus on calling for a ceasefire or on imposing sanctions? After many months of lobbying from us and others, the Taoiseach wrote to Ursula von der Leyen and asked whether Israel was in breach of the humanitarian clauses of the EU-Israel trade agreement. I believe the Taoiseach stated that there had not even been an official response from Ursula von der Leyen’s office. He mentioned that it had been discussed at the previous Council meeting, but I want more than just to be told it was discussed. I want the documented minutes of that discussion. I want to know who was in favour, who was against, and what could be the justification for not enforcing the agreement’s humanitarian clauses. Otherwise, we might as well just rip them up. We are watching genocide not just through the dropping of 2,000 lb bombs on a tiny area with a civilian population, but also through an enforced famine, with famine being used as a weapon of war.

I appreciate the efforts being made across the Chamber by Ministers and others, but there does not seem to be the same degree of urgency. The Government says it will raise the matter and talk with our partners, but we need more than that. We need to be screaming it from the top of our lungs. No longer is it the time for polite letters, waiting for responses that never come or holding side meetings with someone at the European Council. We need to start demanding. When we sign up to these agreements, we do so with all of our constituencies in mind. Ireland is a part of these agreements and we are representing the Irish people, so where such agreements exist, we have to enforce them. Otherwise, what is their purpose? When I knock on doors and go out canvassing, this is the number one issue that people are raising. People are asking about how we are enabling this to happening. It genuinely feels that we are enabling this to happen. When I say “we”, I do not just mean us. I mean the EU collectively. What is happening is undermining the EU. I am a proud citizen of the EU and always have been, but what is happening is obliterating that.

Now is the time for strong leadership to emerge. We cannot just keep operating under the same belief we had a month or two ago that we cannot act unilaterally. We have to. As he goes to his last European Council meeting, that is what I urge the Taoiseach to do.

There are other issues. The EU has taken a dark turn. Parties of the EU, in particular the European People’s Party, are taking a shift to the right that is unbecoming of the EU’s founding principles. As we stand at this critical juncture, the EPP of Ursula von der Leyen and Fine Gael has found itself wanting on, for example, the issues of migration and the nature restoration law. These are complex but vital issues for everyone's future, yet we are seeing people mimic the far right to stop it overtaking them. I will highlight this in a number of ways. For example, the EU is now proposing something similar to the Tories' horrific Rwanda deal and the Taoiseach has given the impression that we support that. We cannot. If that is what the EU is becoming, then it is in opposition to the fundamental principles. People want to come here precisely because the EU was built on a foundation on peace. If bombs are being dropped on them, why would they not want to seek that? Despite that, we want to export people to other countries that are less safe. That would not be done in my name. It certainly would not be done in the name of the people of Dublin. We are better than that.

Deputy Cathal Crowe

I thank the Chair for the opportunity to contribute on these pre-European Council statements.

The Government has an important European meeting ahead of it. I wish to raise a few points at the outset. There are certain food products in the EU that have protected designation of origin status. The blaa bread roll from the Acting Chair's constituency is one product with such status. The time has come for the Government to consider declaring Irish beef a protected designation of origin product. Across the EU, there are far fewer beef cattle being grass fed throughout the year whereas we in Ireland have a beef product, with a healthy animal that spends most of the year out on pasture eating grass. Many farmers in Ireland are moving to organic systems. I must fess up to being one of them. I have moved to a full organic system on my farm of Hereford and Shorthorn cattle. Irish beef is worlds apart from what is found in other regions. We are increasingly seeing products coming from America, Iberia and Italy that are not being fed on grass. They are inferior, less healthy and less environmentally friendly. Maybe it is time for us to take our unique Irish system of dairy and beef and look for EU designation to protect those products.

On a humanitarian front, I welcome that the EU has collectively committed €138 billion to support Ukraine as that country continues to take the brunt of Russian aggression. Who would have thought that conflict would have rumbled on for two years? It has, though, and it is important that European cohesion prevail. There are many Ukrainian refugees in my home community.

We have got to know and befriend many of them and they very much fear that Vladimir Putin has been able to withstand and weather the financial sanctions imposed on him by the European Union and the United States and that his tail is on the up again, having been coronated again a few days ago. It is unbelievable that he believes he can hold on and become President for life. He is a dictator and it is important that Europe has a front line with Ukraine whereby we support it financially and politically.

On Gaza, I echo what other speakers have said. What is happening there is abhorrent and getting worse by the day. We are seeing a state-engineered genocide and people are being forced into a famine. The United Nations stated yesterday that 50% of people in the area are already in a famine situation and the other 50% are heading in that direction very quickly. The United States is, of course, pledging aid but that does not echo true when it is also supplying the Israel Defense Forces with the most advanced and vicious weaponry that exists on this earth. It cannot, on the one hand, allow another country to use its heavy war machinery to bombard a population of innocent people and, on the other hand, be sending in aid ships. That does not ring true.

I welcome the statements made by the Taoiseach in Washington last week. It is important that Ireland holds its position in this situation. Ireland has been one of the most staunch countries in standing up for the innocent people of Gaza. Standing up for the citizenry of Gaza is different from being supportive of Hamas, which is a terror organisation. We need to separate the fact that there is a terror organisation with its claws in some of Gaza from the considerable number of innocent men, women and children who have been suffering the brunt of that for many months.

Deputy Mark Ward

The EU waste management policy highlights the need to reduce waste and dumping, and to reach our recycling targets. I highlight the campaign led by Sinn Féin councillor and European election candidate Daithí Doolan to bring the bins back into public ownership. Monthly bin charges jumped by 48% last year. Customers are charged for brown bin collections. These price hikes are being driven by greed. In the midst of a crisis caused by the spiralling cost of living, price gouging puts further pressure on families already struggling to pay for mortgages, gas, petrol and electricity.

When prices go up for waste collection, illegal dumping follows. The area in which I grew up in north Clondalkin had many social problems but was clean when compared with how it is now. Dumping started getting out of hand when the bin service was privatised. That led to a considerable increase in illegal dumping. This has created added expenditure for our local authorities and that money could be used to clean up our areas and invest in communities.

The solution is clear. The domestic waste collection services must be brought back into public ownership. This would ensure that householders are no longer the victims of companies whose only motivation is profit and greed. If local authorities took back waste collection services, costs would be hugely reduced and money would be put back into people's pockets. It is time for the Government to step in, starting with the introduction of legislation to allow councils to take waste services back into public ownership. The privatisation of waste management companies has already happened in other OECD countries. Can this issue be raised in Europe? Will the Minister of State bring back to this House the benefits that might be found?

Deputy Thomas Gould

Can the Minister of State see the water in the bottle I am holding? It came out of the taps in Cork. People across Cork city have had brown, dirty, black and discoloured water for over a year. Would anyone let members of their family or their kids drink this water? The worst thing about it is that because it is not so black or brown, older people, children and vulnerable people drink it by mistake. They do not take the time to examine it. If you turn on your tap, you have the expectation that you are drinking clean water because in 2024, you should have clean water. However, people in Cork are drinking off, discoloured and dirty water.

I have raised the issue with Uisce Éireann. Hundreds of people have contacted my office, Deputy Ó Laoghaire's office and our Sinn Féin team, including councillors, to complain about the condition and state of the water. We have had questionnaires. Uisce Éireann is talking about a task force and extra flooding. It is doing works, but €20 million was spent on a new water distribution centre in Cork, down the Lee Road, and the water got worse. The Tánaiste will attend the European Council meeting. From 2015 to 2020, the EU provided €15 billion in funding for water quality projects and improvements. The Tánaiste is a Corkman and this is the water we are drinking in Cork. Will he go to Europe and bring back some of that €15 billion so the people of Cork do not have to drink dirty, brown, off-coloured water and so their children can turn on the taps and pour themselves a glass of water? If there is €15 billion available, why is it not coming back here so people have clean drinking water?

Deputy Bríd Smith

A Government Deputy said earlier that Ireland has been most staunch on the question of Gaza. That may be true, but it would not be very hard because Europe has been so poor on the issue. In fact, the image of Ursula von der Leyen running into the arms of Benjamin Netanyahu after 7 October and declaring her undying love for him and his regime will remain with all of us right-minded and humane people in Europe who care about the people of Palestine. Germany has frozen aid funding for Gaza in the most awful circumstances of a humanitarian genocide. One of the wealthiest countries in Europe has frozen aid funding. Austria, Hungary, Czechia and Croatia voted against a ceasefire in Gaza in October 2023. In February 2024, Hungary voted against an immediate ceasefire. Here is the record of very powerful European countries and leaders. Germany, for example, sent more than 1,000 tank engines to Israel. German-made diesel engines are used in the fighter vehicles that are produced in Israel. An Italian company has sold armaments worth almost €120 million to Israel in the past eight to ten years. The European Union fully backs the genocide in Gaza in deed - not just in word but also in deed and in what the countries of the Union do. The Tánaiste, Deputy Micheál Martin, says he is going to have the heads of a Bill ready to get rid of the triple lock and bring Ireland into arrangements that are more like permanent structured co-operation, PESCO, with the rest of the European Union to involve us in personnel training, to donate equipment and to increase our military spending so that we are in line with the EU, ready to protect ourselves and to support any number of wars that may happen on the borders with Europe. I do not say this to condone Putin's disgraceful and aggressive war in Ukraine. I do say it to ask where this is going to lead us. We are going to align ourselves with those I talked about who would throw the Palestinian people not just under a bus but under Israeli tanks and shells, and a murderous and inhumane regime that is now driving people towards famine. We have to watch little children dying when there is no excuse for it.

While all that goes on, we still allow Shannon Airport to be used for we do not know what most of the time. We know it is costing us approximately €4 million per year. It has been used since 2002 and the most recent war in the Gulf to allow American military aircraft to come and go into the Middle East and carry out its murderous regime. We must oppose the use of Shannon Airport for military purposes if we are to be genuinely the most staunch on the question of Palestine and Gaza, as was said by a Government Deputy. We must oppose that obscene use of Shannon Airport and the cover-up that exists around it.

We must also oppose the idea that the triple lock can be dropped and that we can join forces and arms with the likes of Germany, Italy and Ursula von der Leyen who fully support the Israeli war on Gaza.

Unless we do that, we will be endorsing genocide, man-made famine, utter destruction such as the death of 30 people who were killed last night trying to provide food aid to starving people, the plans Israel has to invade the southern end of the Gaza Strip on foot, convoys arriving in Gaza without being blocked being fired upon and attempts to get food to people being blocked.

Whatever we do with regard to pre-European Council statements and our involvement in the EU, we have to be the staunchest. If that is what the Deputies are claiming, we have to be even stauncher and make it very clear that we will not back a EU militarisation regime that wants to involve us in more wars, more weapons, increased spending on militarisation and linking arms with Ursula von der Leyen, the Germans and others, who fully endorse the behaviour of Netanyahu and the murderous regime in Israel. That is a message that this Government must give to the EU.

Deputy Martin Browne

I note that the inadequate response to the Israeli Government's actions in Gaza has given the Israeli Government the feeling it can do what it likes and act with impunity. We have seen this all along and we have seen it result in the death of 40,000 Palestinians, which is unbelievable. It is happening in front of our eyes on social media. Most recently we have heard the Israeli Government publicly state its intention to conduct further military operations without any hesitation or concern about international worries about what it is doing. Nor does the fact that there is widespread malnutrition and famine have any impact on its decision.

The European Council has been less than forthright in persuading the Israeli Government to do otherwise and cease what it is doing. Ahead of this week's meeting, the President of the European Council stated:

Too many innocent lives are at risk because of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and raging famine. International law needs to be fully respected.

We must question the effectiveness of that response because there have been 40,000 deaths and such sentiments indicate the level of shortcomings to date on the part of the Israelis. Ireland needs to go to the meeting with the message that an increase in the EU response is needed. For our part, we need to pre-empt that through an economic, political and diplomatic response of our own.

Farmers recently sent a message loud and clear. It was referenced by the Council President. I urge the Minister of State to bring the message conveyed at home where farmers feel they are to bear the brunt of the regulation while being sidelined at the same time.

Deputy Chris Andrews

Last Tuesday, the International Olympic Committee, IOC, took the decision to bar athletes representing countries with responsibility for war and conflict but this seems to apply to only one war - the war in Ukraine. The IOC feels it has the high moral ground to decide which wars are right and just and which are wrong and illegal. As a result, the only countries to be barred from participating in the Paris Olympics are Belarus and Russia. It is disgraceful that after the deaths of more than 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, the IOC has not barred Israel from the Paris Olympics. Equally, FIFA must ban Israel from international competitions. It was disappointing that only one Government TD signed a letter calling for FIFA and UEFA to ban Israeli football teams from competitive international football. We hear a lot of condemnation of Israel from the Government parties yet none one of them will sign a letter calling for ending Israeli participation in international football. It is disgraceful. It is an example of the Government being all words and no action because Israel is facing no consequences for its actions. We have an opportunity to ensure our sporting national governing bodies, NGBs, ensure they oppose participation by Israeli teams in international sport in Paris and international football. It is shameful of the Government. It is all talk and no action.

Deputy Cathal Berry

I agree with the agenda of the European Council meeting tomorrow and on Friday. It is appropriate that Ukraine is very prominent on the agenda, for obvious reasons. I welcome the Taoiseach's comments and his condemnation of the death of Alexei Navalny. It was completely unacceptable, particularly in advance of the Russian elections. It is very obvious what happened. I welcome the fact that there will be an international investigation but neither I nor any reasonable person would be very hopeful about the outcome. It is very obvious what happened. It reminds us of how lucky we are to be living in such a free and democratic country, and long may that continue.

I welcome the fact that secondary sanctions are being prepared against three other countries - Belarus, North Korea and Iran. This is completely appropriate. These countries are providing a lot of weapons to the Russian dictator and they should be sanctioned as a result. In return, they are getting assistance with their nuclear and satellite technology programmes. I remember the Iranian ambassador appeared before the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence about 18 months ago and swore blindly that Iran was providing no munitions to the Russian Federation. We can see that this was a complete lie.

I welcome the use of immobilised Russian financial assets for the repair and recovery of Ukraine. That is completely appropriate. I know there are concerns about the second- and third-order effects from a monetary stability point of view but if you want to weigh up the second- and third-order effects of inaction, you will see that they are far more serious. The sooner those immobilised assets are put to good use, the better off we will all be.

Regarding the European defence industry strategy, as the Taoiseach pointed, it is a dirty word in Ireland. If this country wants to have a defence force, and I believe it does, we have to arm it. We have two options. We can buy weapons and armoured vehicles for our peacekeeping operations from abroad or make the stuff ourselves. It is not unusual for the likes of Switzerland and Austria to have a very well-developed industrial base from a military point of view so we should not be scared of these words. Nobody has yet mentioned that it is part of the all-island agenda. Belfast has a lot of heavy industry such as Harland and Wolff. It has over 1,200 workers and makes, maintains and refits naval ships. Thales is another company in Belfast with 800 workers. It made the NLAW anti-tank rocket, which literally stopped the Russian army in its tracks in the early stages of the war. If we think we have a Ukrainian refugee issue now, I can only imagine how bad it would have been had the Russian army run all the way up to the Polish border or beyond. Something to bear in mind is the fact that there is a significant military industrial base in the Six Counties and if we are looking towards some kind of reunification over the next decade or so, that is something we must factor in and not run away from.

I welcome the Taoiseach's balanced comments on the situation in the Middle East because it is very clear that Hamas has as little interest in a peaceful resolution to this as the current Israeli Government and I use the phrase "current Israeli Government" very carefully. I welcome political and diplomatic developments stateside over the past 72 hours. It is entirely correct that the majority leader of the US Senate, Chuck Schumer, called for an Israeli election. I think it is entirely appropriate. One of the reasons the conflict has dragged on for so long is that certain people in the Knesset do not want an Israeli general election. We should bear that in mind. I welcome the fact that there was a phone call between President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu and that a delegation from Israel will travel to Washington over the next few days to look at alternatives to a Rafah ground offensive. Priority number one is preventing a ground offensive in Rafah because if that goes ahead, it will turn an already horrendous situation into complete catastrophe.

In relation to humanitarian aid, I concur with the Taoiseach's comments as well. We must look at the land, sea and air options. Obviously, the land option is best. The most volume of humanitarian aid can get across that way. We must continue to apply more pressure to the Israeli Government and to the Egyptian authorities to let more aid in this way. We should also fully explore the maritime humanitarian corridor that has been tentatively established between Cyprus and Gaza.

My question for the Minister of State, and he may or may not have an answer for it, is whether Ireland intends to participate in this humanitarian maritime corridor from Larnaca, Cyprus, to Gaza. If we can do so, in what capacity would we be doing this? From the perspective of an airdrop, I welcome that some parachuted food is still going into Gaza. A few weeks ago, there was talk of Ireland contributing in some way in this regard. It was whether we could fly out some aid and leave it on a runway in Jordan, from where some other nation could parachute it into Gaza for us. Where are we with this proposal? Are there any plans for Ireland to participate in this way? In summary, I welcome the opportunity to contribute. I wish the members of the Irish delegation well and look forward to hearing of their discussions on their return.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

I too am pleased today to be able to contribute as part of these statements before the meetings of the European Council over the next two days. I do not intend to disparage the Taoiseach in any way, and I wish him well on his decision to resign as the leader of Fine Gael. An election will be held in the party to replace him. I am sure the Minister of State, Deputy Burke, will be there at the meetings but I think the Taoiseach will be seen as a lame-duck participant this time because of the situation he has announced today. In any case, my long-time and continuing concerns relate to what really goes on at these meetings. I have asked the Minister of State this question before. Does he really bring the concerns of this House to these meetings?

We have seen from the recent referendums, the first chance people got to give an opinion on this Government's stewardship of the country over the last four years, that it is completely, totally and overwhelmingly out of touch with the feelings of the people on the ground and out of touch with what we have been saying here in this Chamber, or certainly what our Rural Independent Group has been saying. I do not know how the Government could have gone forward with two referendums that were so totally unwanted and deceitful and where there was such a lack of clarity, as well as the hidden advice from the Attorney General and the interdepartmental group. The Government thought it could walk on water and really do what it likes.

It is doing the same when its members go to these summits. They are the first people to stand up and say, yes sir, aye aye sir and three bags full sir. It looks like whatever is proposed in Europe, our Irish people here are the first to take it, without question. I have asked the Minister of State in the past about the number of people coming in here from abroad because of the war in Ukraine and, indeed, now with other displacements, IPAS and everything else. I asked specifically under what article we are obliged to take all these people in. Look, I wish them all well and, God help us, people need support. I think the answer I got back referred to some 1954 proclamation from the United Nations that we should take these international applicants. Many of them are fleeing war, but clearly we know that many of them are coming through Europe and were in other countries before they decided to come here. Indeed, it might have been three or four countries in Europe. Are the members of the Government raising this issue with their colleagues in Europe? Are they not asking if they can help us? We are a small country off the European mainland. Our island country just cannot cope.

All the members of the Government went on their merry way for St. Patrick's Day, Lá Fhéile Pádraig, all over the world. I have no problem with some people going, but, my God, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth was in Japan, of all places in the world, while the mayhem and bedlam was going on over on Mount Street, ar an taobh thiar dínn anseo. I refer to the whole situation that was unfolding. An effort was made for St. Patrick's Day to have it looking not so bad, while the Minister was out in Japan. How is it possible for the Government to be so out of touch that it is possible for it to allow people in and then have no place to put them? How is it possible to allow them to be living in such awful situations and squalor here in the capital and then bus them out to somewhere in County Dublin? Of course, many of them came back in because that was not the solution either.

The Government's policies, therefore, are ham-fisted. They reap what they sow. I am not referring to the Minister of State. The Tánaiste, Deputy Micheál Martin, especially, and Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have sown the seeds in this regard to show everybody we are weak and will just do whatever we are asked to do. We are like nodding donkeys. We nod away, say that everything is fine, we are happy with it and Europe should carry on with its merry way. It is the same idea in respect of having overwhelmingly involved ourselves in the war in Ukraine. This is a war I do not believe can be won, unfortunately. The Russian aggressors are awful, but clearly the war cannot be won. We also see the absolute carnage in Gaza. While the Government has been strong in its condemnation of what is happening there in this Parliament, I do not know what role it is playing in Europe.

I say this because if the Government had stood by what we had been here, an independent, neutral and sovereign state, more respect would have been gained for us. Every time the Tánaiste talks, however, he wants us to be in a European army of some sort or other and to be involved in things we should not be involved in. He is not listening to the people. Mar fhocal scoir anocht, cad a tharla i gCorcaigh Dé hAoine seo caite? I refer to where the four TDs there, the Tánaiste, Deputy Micheál Martin, the Minister, Deputy Coveney, the Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath and Deputy Ó Laoghaire of Sinn Féin were all advocating a Yes vote, and were then overwhelmingly rejected. When is the Government going to listen to the people of Ireland? When are its members going to listen and represent the people of Ireland at home, first, and, equally importantly, abroad? The Government is completely out of step and out of tune.

An Cathaoirleach Gníomhach (Deputy Marc Ó Cathasaigh)

I thank the Deputy.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

If it was in a dancing competition, the Government would be put off the stage because it is not dancing to the tune of the Irish people. It is dancing to tunes from all over the world, except from our own good Irish cultural heritage and indeed-----

An Cathaoirleach Gníomhach (Deputy Marc Ó Cathasaigh)

I thank the Deputy. Tá an t-am caite.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

I know. Tá a fhios agam. I ask the Government to please listen to the people and then to come back and act and serve the people of Ireland.

Deputy Thomas Pringle

It is imperative that the issue of Palestine dominates the meetings of the European Council tomorrow and Friday. Europe has been too weak and slow in showing its solidarity with Palestine and it is disappointing to see some countries still denying the fact that this genocide is taking place at the hands of Israel. This is despite the fact that reports show Israel is deliberately starving Palestinians. Denial of food constitutes a genocide. It is a war crime. I refer to the way 2.2 million Palestinians, who are facing severe shortages due to Israel destroying food supplies and restricting the flow of food and medicines, have been treated, not only by Israel but by the international community. It is appalling and totally inhumane. These people need our urgent assistance, not weak and empty words. The Europe that allows this situation to continue is a Europe that will not be able to command the commitment of its citizens and it is clear that citizens across Europe are at odds with the ruling classes.

There is also a concerted move in Ireland to undermine our neutrality and this has been led by Fianna Fáil and supported by Fine Gael and the Green Party. This ties in with a militarised European Union, which we are starting to see more and more. Arguments have been made that we need to protect our undersea cables and that this is why we should get rid of neutrality. Why must we be militarily aligned to protect our borders? There are also more than 2,000 miles of these cables in international waters. Are we going to join NATO to police those as well?

We have a unique role as one of the only former colonies that is a member of the European Union and we should use this role to act a liaison between the EU and the rest of the world and be a voice of independence rather than a voice for war, which is what being a member of NATO will bring with it. Is the EU going to mark its place in the world by making itself into fortress Europe or is it going to be a voice for peace? I believe we should be the voice for peace, but the Government believes we should kowtow to our European masters and do what they ask of us. This involves joining military alliances and working to ensure the export industry in Ireland can export dual-use equipment to Israel to assist it in destroying Palestine and killing Palestinians. We should be strong enough to stand up independently in the European Union to be a voice of reason. This is vitally important.

We should also use our voice to be critical of the way Europe is handling immigration and how the Mediterranean has become a deathbed and graveyard for so many thousands upon thousands of people who are dying there every day. I refer to the actions of Europe, what Europe stands for and what Europe is doing. The reason people want to come to Europe is because Europe has destroyed all around it and made sure some countries in Africa cannot survive. We should be acting as a voice of reason and of hope for Africa to ensure African countries can develop and look after their people and work together with their people there.

That would go a long way towards preventing what we see constantly now. Rather than being a fortress Europe we should be an open Europe that wants to work and share with the rest of the world and not keep ourselves closed off from the rest of the world to ensure that nobody comes here. That is what the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers should be looking at rather than what we will see which will be ongoing militarisation and the creation of a fortress Europe that the Government will kowtow to and ensure we will be a part of it without any discussion or debate, which is wrong.

Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (Deputy Peter Burke)

I thank the Deputies for their contributions in the House this afternoon. I will focus my remarks on economic issues, specifically the 2024 European semester, the Euro summit and the capital markets union. I will also speak about the enlargement process and progress in Ukraine, Moldova, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, migration and the deteriorating situation in Belarus.

As part of the 2024 European semester cycle of economic policy co-ordination, the European Council will endorse the priorities of the annual sustainable growth survey as presented by the Commission last November and will invite member states to reflect them in the forthcoming national plans. The four priorities under the European semester remain: promoting environmental sustainability; productivity; fairness; and macroeconomic stability with a view to fostering competitive sustainability. The European Council also will endorse the draft Council recommendation on the economic policy of the euro area as approved by finance ministers on 16 January. This covers prudent fiscal policies; sustaining high levels of public investment; wage developments and active labour market policies; access to finance through deeper and stronger capital markets; and preserving macro-financial stability.

As part of the semester process, by the end of April each year Ireland is required to submit to the European Commission a national reform programme alongside the stability programme update. It outlines macroeconomic employment and social challenges facing Ireland and the Government's responses; in particular policies to boost jobs and growth along with how we are addressing the country-specific recommendations which we have received in the semester process. A distinctive feature of this year's process is that the revision of the EU's economic governance framework is currently being finalised and will conclude shortly. Following the provisional political agreement reached last month by the Council and Parliament, the proposed new framework will impact upon the European semester process and the requirement for national reform programme from 2025 onwards, though the details and implications of this are not yet fully finalised.

Leaders will also meet in Euro summit format. They will be joined by the Eurogroup president, Paschal Donohoe, and European Central Bank President, Christine Lagarde. The Euro summit will discuss the economic situation and progress to further capital markets union including last week's Eurogroup statement on the future of the capital markets union.

I welcome the ambition of the Eurogroup statement on common priorities for making swift progress deepening Europe's capital markets while creating attractive investment opportunities for both individual and institutional investors. In a fast-changing global economy we need to ensure that businesses in Ireland and across the EU, particularly SMEs, have different ways of accessing the financing they need to grow and to scale up across European and global markets. It is a crucial component of a wider competitiveness agenda that Ireland continues to advocate strongly for, including in looking ahead to the new strategic agenda to be adopted by the European Council ahead of the next institutional cycle.

Ireland welcomed the decision of the European Council in December to open a session of negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova with negotiating frameworks to be adopted once certain key requirements are met, and to grant candidate status to Georgia on the basis that nine further steps are taken. Leaders are expected to call for further work in this regard at the European Council. As the Commission has prepared a draft negotiating framework for Ukraine and Moldova, we would like to see swift adoption of the negotiating frameworks.

In December there will also be a clear signal from the European Council that the EU will open accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina once the necessary degree of compliance with the membership criteria is achieved. The European Commission prepared a report on progress in Bosnia Herzegovina and leaders are expected to consider the recommendations therein. We strongly support Bosnia and Herzegovina's EU perspective, but we will need to see the evidence of progress on the required reforms outlined by the Commission. Our position on the opening of the accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina will be informed by the Commission's additional reporting. The Government's recent decision to open new resident embassies in Moldova, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina is evidence of our commitment to EU enlargement and our desire to support candidate countries as they prepare themselves for membership of our Union. We want to see further positive outcomes to maintain the current momentum and to continue incentivising reforms. It is important that candidate countries seize this opportunity by making rapid and meaningful progress on accession reforms.

Leaders will also return to the issue of migration at the March European Council and will review the state of play since their last discussion in December. Over the past four years, significant progress has been made in the area of migration and asylum. Sustainable reforms were put in place following the political agreement on the pact on migration and asylum, which is a significant step forward towards a permanent solution to the challenges posed by irregular and forced migration. The pact will introduce a common set of rules and policies in the areas of migration, asylum, integration and border management, which will ensure harmonisation of rules across the EU and provide a robust legislative framework to improve the functioning of the asylum system. It represents an important balance between effective asylum and return processes and safeguards for those seeking protection who are most vulnerable. When it comes into force, this agreement will allow for unprecedented reforms and a more effective, coherent fair system to manage migration across the European Union. In the coming weeks the Government will also decide if Ireland will opt in to participate in the pact.

Since the fraudulent presidential elections of August 2020, the situation in Belarus has continued to deteriorate. Belarusian society faces systematic repression aimed at silencing all independent voices. Close to 1,500 political prisoners are incarcerated in appalling conditions. Ireland has consistently called for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners. Repression, human rights violations and restrictions on political participation and across independent media in Belarus reached unprecedented levels in the build-up to the parliamentary and local elections on 25 February. Conditions for free and fair elections were not met and new parliamentary local officials risk a lack of democratic legitimacy. Leaders are expected to express concern for the deteriorating human rights situation and call for the release of all political prisoners.

I again thank Members for their active participation in this debate.