I thank both Chairmen. I am pleased to be invited by them to address the joint sitting of the Joint Committee on European Affairs and Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade and to have an opportunity to explore the agenda for both the Foreign Affairs Council and the General Affairs Council next week. These Council meetings will cover a wide range of topics, so I will endeavour to inform members of the main issues arising and Ireland's perspectives on them. I look forward to engaging in a question and answer session with members and in particular with our MEP, Ms Phil Prendergast. It is important in terms of inter-institutional engagement that we offer the opportunity to MEPs to participate in the committee meetings. I am delighted to see her.
Three distinct Council meetings will take place next Monday and Tuesday. The first is the Foreign Affairs Council proper. It will address Afghanistan; the EU's Southern Neighbourhood; the Horn of Africa; Serbia-Kosovo; CSDP issues; and it may also touch upon the forthcoming EU-US summit. I will represent Ireland at this Council meeting.
On Monday afternoon, the Foreign Affairs Council will convene in its development format, at which Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, will attend on behalf of this country. That meeting is scheduled to address the future of EU development policy; EU budget support; aid effectiveness; and the Horn of Africa.
On Tuesday, I will attend the General Affairs Council, GAC. We will have an orientation debate on the next Multiannual Financial Framework, including Cohesion Funding and the CAP. We will address a follow-up to the October European Council and we will begin to prepare for the December European Council on the basis of a draft annotated agenda. The GAC will also review the EU strategy for the Baltic Sea region.
On the margins of these Council meetings, I will also represent Ireland at a ministerial breakfast meeting of the informal group for European action on the Republic of Moldova on Monday next and an informal enlargement forum dinner also on Monday. On Sunday evening, ahead of the Foreign Affairs Council, FAC, meeting, High Representative Ashton will hold an informal dinner on Russia which will look forward to the EU-Russia summit on 14 to 15 December.
Discussions on Afghanistan at the FAC will be held in the context of the international conference in Bonn on 5 December. Ministers will strive to agree a common EU position for this conference. Work is ongoing at official level to formulate draft Council conclusions. These are likely to commit the EU to continued engagement in Afghanistan, including an extension in principle of the mandate of the EU police mission, EUPOL, beyond 2013, while emphasising the importance of strengthening Afghan institutions, democracy and governance, as well as making the international effort more coherent and cohesive.
Events in the Southern Neighbourhood continue to be a major preoccupation for the EU and member states. It is anticipated that discussion at Monday's Council will focus in particular on the current situation in Syria, as well as events in Libya, Egypt and Tunisia. The Council will again consider the serious internal situation in Syria, following last month's detailed discussion which approved further sanctions in an effort to increase pressure on President Assad to end the indiscriminate killings and detentions of protestors. This situation is deeply destabilising at an already very tense time in the region, and the only answer for now is that still greater pressure be put on President Assad, while efforts continue to reach out to influential elements associated with both the regime and the opposition. If the Arab League peace initiative, agreed to on 3 November, proves to have failed to end the violence, as appears to be the case, the Council is likely to extend the EU's targeted sanctions against those associated with the regime and who are known to have some responsibility for the repression now ongoing.
In regard to Libya, High Representative Ashton is likely to brief on her plans to visit Libya in the near future as well as discuss the immediate prospects following last month's declaration of liberation pronounced in Benghazi on 23 October. A new Prime Minister, Mr. Abdurrahim-al Keib, has now been appointed and it is hoped that a transitional government will be announced very shortly. This is an urgently required step in order to put in place an administration which can oversee the crucial transition process to the holding of planned elections next June. The Council is likely to emphasise in particular the need for full and credible investigations into all alleged violations of human rights which occurred during the conflict and to welcome the commitments made so far in this regard by the National Transitional Council.
The Council will also consider recent developments in Tunisia and Egypt and, in particular, will welcome the recently conducted legislative elections held in Tunisia on 23 October which passed off peacefully and have been positively evaluated by the EU observation mission deployed to witness them and have been welcomed by the Tánaiste. The Council may also discuss recent developments in Egypt which is preparing for historic elections on 28 November. The need for the EU and the international community to remain actively engaged with the current military authorities and with the democratic transformation under way in Egypt is evident, particularly in light of signs of growing sectarian tensions and violence which claimed the lives of 26 people, most of whom were Coptic Christians, on 9 October. The Egyptian authorities have undertaken to conduct a full investigation into these dreadful events and we would welcome that, as a clear demonstration of the commitment to implement fundamental changes in Egypt, in line with the democratic aspirations which underlay the February revolution.
Ireland is very concerned at the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Horn of Africa, to which the Chairman, Deputy Pat Breen, already alluded, and we welcome the opportunity for a discussion at EU level. The Horn of Africa continues to experience the most severe food crisis to face the region in 60 years. Many millions of people in drought-stricken areas of Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Uganda remain severely affected.
The epicentre of the crisis is in southern Somalia, where famine has now been declared in six areas of the country, and where the UN has warned that 750,000 people risk starvation if efforts to respond are not scaled up sufficiently. The worsening humanitarian and security situation is closely linked to the ongoing political stalemate and the absence of a functioning administration in large swathes of the country. The EU has urged the parties, including the representatives of the UN-backed Transitional Federal Government, TFG, to press ahead with implementation of the roadmap agreed on 6 September with a view to the rapid establishment of a representative and effective government. The crisis in Somalia and the impact on the wider region demonstrates that we cannot tackle the various problems in isolation. A comprehensive response is required. The strategic framework for the Horn of Africa which foreign ministers are expected to agree next week takes an holistic approach to the region, addressing political, economic, security and humanitarian aspects. In parallel, the decision to establish an EU special representative for the region will enable the European Union to play a more proactive role in supporting long-term political solutions, and will create an EU focal point for other international actors.
On our own response to date, the Government has already allocated almost €11 million in emergency support to the crisis, having also committed itself to a total expenditure of €20 million before the end of 2012. In per capita terms, Ireland is, therefore, one of the most committed and generous donors to the region. Irish Aid has carried out two airlifts of emergency water and shelter materials to Concern and UNHCR for their activities in Somalia and the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya. It has also deployed 24 members of its rapid response corps to humanitarian agencies in the region. The Minister of State, Deputy O’Sullivan, and I both look forward to meeting our EU counterparts next Monday to discuss how best the European Union can help in the immediate term and in terms of the long-term support that the region is likely to require.
The Foreign Affairs Council will discuss the situation in Serbia and Kosovo and, more specifically, the current state of play in the EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina. It will address common security and defence policy, CSDP, issues over lunch. The discussion will follow on from the January Foreign Affairs Council conclusions and the High Representative's report in July. The focus of our discussions will be on the future of CSDP in the context of reduced resources. A more substantive discussion on CSDP issues is expected to take place at the Foreign Affairs Council in defence ministers format at the end of November. Ministers may also discuss preparations for the forthcoming EU-US summit, which is to take place in Washington on 28 November. EU-US activity since the 2010 summit in Lisbon has been intense and wide ranging.
Let me consider the development aspect of the Foreign Affairs Council. At the Foreign Affairs Council in development format, Ministers will have an opportunity to discuss the recently published European Commission document Increasing the Impact of EU Development Policy: An Agenda for Change. The communication proposes the implementation of a differentiated approach to the allocation of development aid, focusing on a limited range of sectors and countries. This, in effect, means that EU development aid will in future be concentrated on the least-developed countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, and that traditional development aid will no longer be provided to countries such as Brazil, China and India.
Ireland has welcomed the Commission's communication and the focus on specific countries, such as on Ireland's programme countries in Africa and on specific poverty-reduction targets.
Development Ministers will have a discussion informed by the Commission's communication on the future approach of EU budget support to third countries. This communication, in particular, focuses on meeting strict eligibility criteria which are broadly in line with existing Irish Aid policy, with an emphasis on national policies and reforms, public financial management and overall governance. Ireland welcomes this communication.
Council conclusions will be considered by the development Foreign Affairs Council on the EU Common Position for the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness to be held in Busan, Korea, from 29 November to 1 December. My colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, will lead the Irish delegation in Busan and Deputy Pat Breen, Chairman of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, will also attend. The high-level forum will assess progress made in meeting the global commitments on the effective delivery of development aid as set out in the 2005 Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness.
Ireland has played an active role in bringing the aid effectiveness agenda to the fore at the international level and in our programme countries. The quality of aid from Ireland, as measured by the OECD, is ranked among the best globally. Last September, the OECD published the results of its 2010 Paris Declaration monitoring survey, which re-affirmed this rating.
I have already addressed the Horn of Africa item, which will appear on both Foreign Affairs Council agendas next Monday. There are four items on the agenda for next Tuesday's General Affairs Council meeting. First will be a follow-up to the European Council meeting of 23 October 2011. We will first discuss the follow-up to the European Council of 23 October, on the basis of a very useful Polish Presidency report which pulls together work items arising from European Council meetings since the start of the year.
As members may recall, the October European Council meeting focused on intensifying efforts to secure sustainable and job-creating growth, identifying a number of key priorities for action. These include measures to complete the Single Market, advance the digital single market, and improve the environment for SMEs. It also stressed the importance of reducing administrative burdens as another area with a high impact on growth. The Government very strongly supports this work and I am glad to see that it being progressed.
Next Tuesday's meeting will also look forward to the meeting of the European Council on 9 December on the basis of a draft annotated agenda. It is expected that leaders will address the overall economic situation in Europe, which is obviously unfolding at a rather rapid pace. It will also return to the question of growth-enhancing measures.
The December meeting will track progress under the Euro-Plus pact in which 24 member states, including Ireland, participate. It will also hear from President Van Rompuy who, as the members will recall, was asked to identify possible steps to strengthen the economic union, focusing on further strengthening economic convergence within the euro area, improving fiscal discipline and deepening economic union, including through exploring the possibility of limited treaty changes. He will make his initial report on this work. I strongly support the approach President Van Rompuy has said he will take. He will aim to identify what needs to be done, and only then will he look to how to do it.
The Government has made clear its view that there is considerable scope to strengthen cooperation within the framework of the existing treaties. This is a view shared by a very great number of member states. However, it is clear that others take a different view and it will be for the meeting in December to chart a way forward.
The European Council will revert to the issue of energy next month, following up on progress since orientation was provided by the European Council in February. Leaders will focus on energy efficiency, the internal energy market, energy infrastructure development and external energy policy. They will also assess the initial findings of nuclear stress tests, based on a Commission report, and the progress report on the security of nuclear power plants.
Enlargement will also feature, following publication of the Commission's annual enlargement strategy and progress reports on 12 October. Two recommendations from the Commission will require specific approval by the European Council: agreement to open accession negotiations with Montenegro; and offering candidate status to Serbia, with the prospect of opening negotiations once its achieves further significant progress on a number of key issues, including normalisation of relations with Kosovo. We can also look forward to the signature of the Croatian accession treaty, which looks likely to take place in the margins of the Council.
Next Tuesday's General Affairs Council will approve conclusions on the review of the EU strategy for the Baltic Sea region, which was launched in 2009, and may consider the next steps in the follow-up to the second annual forum of the strategy, which took place last month in Gdansk, Poland. Ireland has supported regional strategies and we hope to learn lessons from the review of the Baltic Sea region strategy that can be applied to implementation of the Atlantic strategy which is due to be published at the end of this month.
The final item on the agenda for next Tuesday is an orientation discussion on the European Union's next Multiannual Financial Framework, MFF. As the members will be aware, the Commission published its detailed proposals for the MFF in June, suggesting a budget of €1,025 billion for the period 2014 to 2020. This represents an increase of about 3% over the current framework, amounting to about 1.05% of the European Union's gross national income. The Commission also proposes alternative means for funding the budget, namely, a financial transaction tax and a new VAT-based resource. Discussions are at an early stage and member states are still advancing general positions before entering into substantive negotiations. Our approach to the negotiations will be guided by the following considerations.
Fundamentally, we want a properly funded and properly functioning EU, with the right mix of priorities, fair allocation of resources and a focus on jobs and growth. We see a need for continued food security and safety, which warrants only gradual changes to the CAP. Ireland also has an express national interest in defending its share of CAP payments. At the same time, the overall resources directed at the CAP are likely to remain fixed at best and it will be in the research and innovation areas that any future increases will be seen. The Government wishes to identify all possibilities for benefiting from available EU funds, especially in the Europe 2020 areas, including competitiveness, productivity-enhancing measures, employment, climate change and energy.
