John Gormley
Ceist:80 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Defence if he will report on the informal meeting of EU Defence Ministers in Athens on 14 March 2003; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8997/03]
Vol. 564 No. 2
80 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Defence if he will report on the informal meeting of EU Defence Ministers in Athens on 14 March 2003; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8997/03]
89 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Defence the discussions which were held on Iraq at the EU Defence Ministers meeting in Athens on 14 March 2003; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8998/03]
91 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Defence the discussions he has had with his EU counterparts in relation to national and European defence and security issues in the wake of recent international developments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8981/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 80, 89 and 91 together.
I welcome the opportunity to report to the House on discussions which took place at the informal meeting of Defence Ministers held in Greece on 14 and 15 March last. A number of such informal meetings have been held in recent years. The meetings have been a useful forum for promoting dialogue between Defence Ministers in the context of the development of ESDP structures.
While the thrust of the agenda in Greece related to progressing ESDP, the meeting took place against the background of the deepening crisis in relation to Iraq which has subsequently led to war. The Iraqi crisis was the subject of a discussion held in closed session at the meeting. While I do not wish to breach the confidentiality of the discussion, the national positions of the various member states have been well publicised. In the current climate, it is crucial that those with differing opinions and viewpoints on this very serious crisis maintain continued dialogue.