A Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 3 and 4 together.
I refer the Deputy to my statement in the House on 12 December when I reported on the principal issues arising from the Maastricht Treaty, which include, of course, the new provisions on a common foreign and security policy.
Article J.4 of the Treaty document provides that the common foreign and security policy shall include all questions related to the security of the European Union, including the eventual framing of a common defence policy, which might lead to a common defence.
The passage on which the Deputy bases his questions refers to Western European Union as being an integral part of the development of the European Union, the defence policy of which he will note from the passage from Article J.4 from which I have quoted is yet to be framed. That policy will, on present perspectives, be the subject of an Intergovernmental Conference in 1996.
Under the Maastricht Treaty, the Western European Union is not part of the European Union. It is a separaate international organisation established and operating under a separate treaty.
The requirement of that Article that the policy of the Union will not prejudice the specific character of this country's security and defence policy is a most important provision. It was agreed to at my request to accommodate our national position. It is specific in its terms and reflects recognition of our traditional position which I was successful in securing in the first instance at the second EC Summit in Rome in December 1990. This was one of our major objectives in the negotiations and the satisfactory outcome fully protects our position in this area.
The specific character of our security and defence policy has, of course, a number of elements but in the present context, two are particularly relevant: first, our non-membership of organisations whose raison d'etre is that they are military alliances and secondly, that if the Community, or the European Union now to be established, were to develop its own defence arrangements for its security we would consider participating in those arrangements.
The whole issue will be dealt with in a White Paper, to be issued as soon as possible, in which the Government will set out in detail the implications for this country of the Treaty on European Union.