EU Sanctions.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 24 November 2004

Wednesday, 24 November 2004

Questions (83, 84)

Pat Breen

Question:

60 Mr. P. Breen asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation in Libya. [30047/04]

Bernard Allen

Question:

71 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will report on the European Union proposals to lift sanctions and arms embargo’s imposed on Libya; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30049/04]

Written answers

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 60 and 71 together.

Wide-ranging sanctions against Libya were imposed by the EU in 1986 and the UN in 1992 in response to evidence of Libyan support for international terrorism. In recent years, Libya has moved to break its links with terrorism and repair its relations with the EU and other countries. In recognition of this, both EU and UN sanctions were suspended in 1999, except for the EU arms embargo, which remained in force. The UN sanctions were finally abolished in September 1999.

This positive development of Libyan policy has continued. In December 2003, Libya renounced and began to dismantle its programmes to develop weapons of mass destruction and has agreed to pay significant financial compensation to relatives of those killed in terrorist attacks which it had supported. Against this background, the EU decided at the General Affairs and External Relations Council in October to lift the last element of the former sanctions regime, the EU arms embargo. The EU's code of conduct on arms sales will continue to apply to the supply of military equipment to Libya.

Ireland is in favour of engaging with Libya and encouraging it to continue on the more positive path it has adopted. The EU still has concerns in relation to Libya, especially in the field of human rights. A key issue is the case of the Bulgarian and Palestinian medical workers convicted and sentenced to death in relation to the infection of children in Benghazi with HIV. The October GAERC conclusions made it clear that the EU looked to the Libyan authorities for early action in this case.