I attended the meeting of the European Council with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Gerard Collins, in Luxembourg on 8 April last. Since the meeting was informal, there were no formal conclusions. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Gulf War and its consequences for the Twelve. The situation of the Kurdish minority in Iraq became critical in the days immediately before the meeting. As a result it was this aspect of the consequences of the Gulf War which became the major topic at the meeting.
The meeting condemned the brutal Iraqi repression of large sections of its own population, in particular the Kurds, and considered that the resultant situation might be considered a threat to international peace and security. This view of the European Council is a reflection of the seriousness with which the 12 Heads of State or Government view the repression of millions of its own population by the Iraqi leadership. Once it is determined by the Security Council that a threat to international peace and security exists, the UN Charter provides for a number of means which will enable international peace and security to be restored. For their part, the Twelve consider sanctions imposed on Iraq because of its invasion and annexation of Kuwait should be maintained if the Iraqi repression continued. Since the 8 April meeting, the Twelve have agreed at Foreign Minister level to investigate the personal responsibility of the Iraqi leadership for possible breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention and of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in connection with their treatment of their own population, and the Twelve will be in touch with the UN Secretary-General in this regard.
There was a unanimous determination by the European Council on 8 April to act rapidly in order to provide humanitarian aid to the refugees, of whom it is estimated now that there are a total of up to two million, resulting in human suffering of truly appalling dimensions. The European Council decided that a total of 150 million ECUs should be provided for immediate aid, 100 million ECUs from the Community budget and 50 million ECUs by the member states. This means that, between our share of the Community budget contribution and our own national contribution to the Community programme, the Irish Government will be providing aid worth £1 million to help the Kurds. In addition to the Government's contribution, a further £550,000 has been raised by the Irish Red Cross, and further very significant amounts are being generously provided by other charitable agencies. These further sums are composed of gifts by the public. In addition, there is significant aid in kind both from the State and from private sources.
The Heads of State and Government were determined to get food aid to the Kurds immediately. Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the nine countries which are members of the Western European Union held a brief meeting in the margins of the European Council and decided to avail of the logistical support of that organisation to supply aid to the Kurds. At my proposal, it was agreed that those countries which are not members of the Western European Union, including Ireland, could use civil aircraft to transport aid; and Deputies will have noted that an Irish Government-Red Cross plane with substantial quantities of shelter items, clothing, medical supplies and food has already flown to the area. As my colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs has pointed out, the plane arrived safely on schedule and was met by our Ambassador in Teheran. The cargo was unloaded immediately and put onto trucks to be sent to the refugee areas in the north-west of Iran.
It was the clear view of the European Council that the provision of humanitarian aid to the Kurds is not a sufficient reponse to the situation they are now facing. The meeting considered the establishment in Iraq of safe havens or zones where refugees could feel secure from repression so that humanitarian aid could effectively be supplied to them. But against the background of numerous deaths of innocent people exposed to extreme conditions in which delivery of adequate assistance is very difficult, the Heads of State or Government were convinced of the need to provide refugees with adequate security in which they could benefit from the aid now being massively supplied.
I welcome the news of the most recent development in this desperate and unprecedented situation, the establishment in a purely humanitarian spirit of about half a dozen encampments in Northern Iraq for the orderly distribution of supplies to Kurdish refugees. I believe it is legitimate to take such measures, which might not in more normal circumstances be contemplated. The idea of such enclaves received the unanimous support in Luxembourg of the European Council.
So far there is no specific proposal as to how this will be arranged but the question will be pursued through the United Nations. It will be for the United Nations to determine the precise modalities of its implementation. The Secretary-General has sent a representative to Iraq, Turkey and Iran in pursuit of his humanitarian efforts. This representative is to report forthwith on the plight of the Iraqi civilian population, and in particular the Kurdish population, suffering from the repression in all its forms inflicted by the Iraqi authorities. The Secretary-General's representative arrived in the region last weekend. It is anticipated that more than 50 relief workers will be in position by the end of this week, thus providing a UN presence on the ground.
The meeting also discussed the situation in the Middle East in the aftermath of the Gulf War. The European Council paid tribute to the irreplaceable role which the United Nations had played throughout the crisis. It was agreed that the three conditions for peace in the Middle East are, first, a solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict and the Palestinian issue; second, greater democratic legitimacy of Governments in the region; and, third, economic development as well as the reduction of the great inequalities of income there. There is now, perhaps, an opportunity to promote a definitive peace settlement in the long running Arab-Israeli dispute. The Community is prepared to play its full part in promoting such a settlement and the Twelve are operating in close co-ordination with the United States to this end.
The European Council, therefore, confirmed that it is important that the Community should have a role in the search for peace in the region and expressed support for the efforts currently being undertaken by President Bush. It is essential that now, in the aftermath of the war, there should be political progress. The principles which must be observed are incorporated in the UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, concerning the Arab-Israeli conflict and the principle of territory being exchanged for peace; the right of Israel to secure and recognised frontiers and the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. There was also emphasis on respect for human rights and the improvement of living conditions in the Occupied Territories.
The meeting considered that, as regards security after the war, this is principally a matter for the states concerned. The importance of a check on the accumulation of conventional armaments was underlined. Ministers for Foreign Affairs are to be asked to formulate proposals concerning the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in the region. We are all conscious now of the fact that an important contributory factor to the outbreak of war in the Gulf on 2 August last was the massive arms buildup over the last year by Iraq. Far from promoting stability in the region, this build-up was a very significant element in the instability which finally resulted in war. It will be necessary to make a special effort to reduce the level of armaments, especially of weapons of mass destruction, in the region as a whole.
The European Community will be contributing to the economic development of the area and in particular to the emergency efforts at reconstruction and at responding to the grave pollution problems in the Gulf.
There was a discussion of the long term implications of the Gulf War for the common foreign and security policy of the Community, and it was agreed that it was important to pursue actively the negotiations on this subject in the Inter-governmental Conference on Political Union. These negotiations are going ahead according to the time-table laid down at the European Council in Dublin in June of last year.
I also had a brief meeting in Luxembourg with the British Prime Minister, Mr. Major, at which we discussed matters of interest to our two countries in the Community and bilaterally. We agreed in principle to meet again in the near future for a more substantial discussion on Community issues.