Written Answers Nos. 203-211
203. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he proposes to raise the ongoing crisis in Libya at the next European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13744/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI expect that there will be a discussion of the crisis in Libya at the next meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council and I will participate in that discussion. At the March meeting of the Council, High Representative Mogherini was invited to work on possible EU actions to support a government of national unity, in case such a government is agreed at the UN brokered talks. Regrettably, no such agreement has yet been forthcoming since Libya was last discussed at the Council.
However, the UN Special Representative Bernardino Leon has said that ‘very important progress’ has been made in the most recent round of talks held last week.
I hope that the talks soon continue so that the progress made heretofore can be translated into an agreement which can guarantee a better future for the people of Libya.
I call on all parties in Libya to engage constructively to this end, including by observing an immediate ceasefire. This is the only way we can fill the political and security vacuum in Libya and restore the rule of law in the country.
204. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he proposes to raise the ongoing crisis in Yemen at the next European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13745/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraIt is not yet clear whether or not there will be a further discussion of Yemen at the next meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council on 20 April. The Council most recently considered the situation at its meeting on 9 February 2015 when we set out our views on the steps required to achieve a sustainable solution to the developing crisis in the country. Regrettably, the political and security crisis in Yemen has deepened in recent days. Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition which has launched air strikes in response to advances by Houthi forces. On Tuesday of this week, the High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed his shock at the air strike on the Al-Mazraq camp and warned of total collapse in Yemen. This is a terrifying prospect for a country already facing a dire humanitarian situation, not to mention the threat posed by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and by a nascent ISIS movement; the latter claimed responsibility for the brutal attacks at mosques in Sana’a on 20 March.
The EU continues to support the efforts of the UN Secretary General’s Special Adviser on Yemen, Jamal Benomar, who has been trying in recent weeks to facilitate inclusive negotiations between the parties, but to no avail as yet. It nonetheless remains my view that peace talks are the optimum way to achieve a political consensus which can restore order to Yemen and avoid a protracted and sectarian conflict with implications for the stability of the region.
205. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the proposals he proposes to put forward at the next European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting on the need for the European Union to strengthen all necessary measures to deal more effectively with international terrorism; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13746/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe issue of how best to respond to the threat posed by terrorism has been high on the EU agenda in recent months. Foreign Ministers have focused in particular on the contribution that the EU can make through its external action to the effort to prevent and counter terrorism at the international level. We have discussed strategies to engage with third countries to prevent violent extremism and to strengthen their capacity to detect and prevent terrorism in full compliance with international law and human rights. The Foreign Affairs Council of 9 February 2015 agreed detailed conclusions under five headings: strengthening partnerships with key countries, supporting capacity building, countering radicalisation and violent extremism, promoting international cooperation and addressing underlying factors and ongoing crises. The Informal European Council on 12 February took account of our discussions and conclusions. In their statement, EU Heads of State and Government set out a range of priorities to guide our further work and that of Justice and Home Affairs Ministers.
Ireland supports the comprehensive approach being taken at EU level to preventing and countering terrorism. At meetings of the Foreign Affairs Council I have highlighted the need for measures to be human rights-compliant and in accordance with international law. I have stressed the need to tackle underlying factors that contribute to radicalisation and terrorism and in particular the importance of the link between security and development. I have also emphasised the need to ensure a joined-up approach in relation to the discussions of Foreign Ministers and those of our Justice and Home Affairs counterparts.
I am satisfied that these priorities have been reflected in the EU’s approach to date and I shall continue to underline these points when the issue is next on the agenda of the Foreign Affairs Council, most likely in May.
206. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade in view of the recent peer review by the OECD Development Assistance Committee, which included a recommendation to strengthen mechanisms to identify potential policy conflicts, if the focus areas for the first biennial report on Ireland's progress and policy coherence for development has been agreed; if so, if he will provide the areas and the way those particular areas came to be identified; when the first biennial report is likely to be presented to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13747/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Government’s Policy for International Development, One World One Future, commits us to strengthening the oversight role of the Inter-Departmental Committee on Development and to producing a biennial report on Ireland’s progress on Policy Coherence for Development (PCD).
The OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Peer Review of Ireland’s Development Cooperation Programme, published in December 2014, noted the considerable progress already made in relation to policy coherence for development, including through research work which has contributed significantly to policy coherence at EU level. It also recognised that there is scope to do more and recommended that we develop a more strategic approach and focus on a few policy issues where greater coherence is required.
Ireland is currently co-facilitating the major negotiations at the UN in New York on new Sustainable Development Goals which will replace the Millennium Development Goals and form part of a new global development framework. The transformative and universal nature of the Sustainable Development Goals will have important implications for policy coherence. The success of the Post-2015 development agenda hinges on coherence at domestic and international level to ensure policies are focused on poverty eradication and sustainable development. The Inter-Departmental Committee on Development (IDCD), has been meeting regularly at official level, co-chaired by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, to review Ireland’s participation in the process and the indicators for the Sustainable Development Goals.
It is my intention, following the UN Summit in New York in September, to review how the IDCD is structured and to ensure it is well placed to deliver on our commitment to policy coherence for development in line with the recommendations of the DAC Peer Review and the new development framework. I will work with the committee to identify the areas where Ireland can really make a difference in relation to policy coherence, building on the achievements to date. These could include issues in relation to food security, health policy and international taxation. I would hope that the first biennial report to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade will be presented during the first quarter of 2016.
207. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has raised at the United Nations and the European Union the ongoing humanitarian crisis affecting Syrian civilians; if he has raised the desperate hardship and suffering imposed through starvation until submission sieges; if he is aware that it is generally accepted that humanitarian aid is still not reaching the most needy and vulnerable, particularly children and elderly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13748/15]
Amharc ar fhreagra208. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the proposals to be put forward at the forthcoming Kuwait humanitarian conference on Syria; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13749/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 207 and 208 together.
The protracted crisis in Syria and the region has resulted in immense humanitarian need. More than 200,000 people have lost their lives, and there are now over 12.2 million people in need of immediate life-saving support within Syria. Due to the violence and the lack of access to aid, 3.8 million people have left Syria for neighbouring countries. In December, the UN launched humanitarian appeals for US$8.4 billion to help nearly 18 million people in Syria and the region in 2015. This was the largest UN appeal in history.
This week, I attended the major humanitarian pledging conference for Syria which was chaired by UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon and hosted by the Government of Kuwait. The aim of the Conference was to mobilise the required financial resources to enable the UN and its partners to meet urgent humanitarian needs, and to harness solidarity among concerned nations for the plight of the Syrian people.
I made a significant pledge of €12 million on behalf of the Irish Government to provide Irish Aid funding and emergency supplies to help meet the urgent needs of those affected by the Syria conflict in 2015. This contribution will bring the total value of the Irish Government’s response to the crisis in Syria to over €41 million. Ireland is one of the most generous contributors to the humanitarian response on a per capita basis. Our aid will be delivered through UN partners, the Red Cross and NGOs and will support people displaced within Syria and those across the wider region. One of the most difficult features of this crisis is that many of those who are most in need are beyond the reach of humanitarian workers, with vulnerable groups such as women, children and the elderly being particularly affected. It is disappointing that cross-border access has actually diminished over the last year. Ireland continues to advocate strongly for the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions on humanitarian access in Syria. The EU has been the largest single donor in response to the crisis. At the most recent EU Foreign Affairs Council, in which my colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr. Charlie Flanagan, T.D., participated, a strategy was adopted outlining how the EU and its Member States are planning to counter the threat posed by ISIL and help restore peace and security in Syria and Iraq.
At the Pledging Conference in Kuwait, I called on all parties to the conflict to work towards a political solution to the conflict, and highlighted the plight of Syrian refugees and host communities in neighbouring countries. I underlined the importance of allowing unhindered humanitarian access so that it reaches these very vulnerable populations. I paid tribute to the efforts of humanitarian workers who provide critical assistance in a very dangerous environment.
While the immediate imperative is to respond to the escalating humanitarian needs on the ground, it is essential that we persevere with the international efforts to find a sustainable political solution.
209. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has raised at the United Nations or at the European Union Foreign Affairs Council the ongoing appalling slaughter of civilians in opposition-controlled areas in Syria, as a result of the ongoing aerial bombardment of the Assad regime; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13750/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraIreland has repeatedly condemned the targeting of civilians by all parties in the course of the Syrian conflict at both the EU and the UN. As I said in my speech to the UN General Assembly in September 2014, “the flagrant violation of international law by all sides in the Syrian conflict must be confronted and referred to the International Criminal Court”. I reiterated this in my statement of 15 March 2015, to mark the 4th anniversary of the Syrian uprising. The reports from the UN Human Rights Council Commission of Inquiry make clear the utterly unacceptable use of violence by Assad regime forces against the Syrian people, including the use of barrel bombs and the illegal use of chemicals such as chlorine as armaments. I repeat Ireland’s call for the Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court. There can be no impunity for those involved in war crimes in Syria.
210. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the annual expenditure incurred in providing a consulate in Cardiff in Wales and in Tehran in Iran, when they were operational; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13751/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraEmbassy Tehran was operational from 1976 to 2012 and incurred expenditure of €534,738 in 2011 which was the last full year of operation by this Embassy. The Consulate General of Ireland in Cardiff was operational from 1998 to 2009; expenditure incurred in 2008 the last full year of operation was €290,410. Office expenditure includes staff, travel, office running, premises and ICT costs.
211. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has raised with the Egyptian authorities the very serious concerns of a family (details supplied) over the ongoing detention of a person; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13752/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI, and officials in my Department including our Embassy in Cairo, have raised this case with the Egyptian authorities on many occasions. Following the beginning of the trial on 29 March, a formal application for release on bail is now being considered by the Egyptian court. Embassy Officials were present in court on 29 March and will attend the next hearing on 26 April. I am aware of reports over the weekend that Ibrahim Halawa was being tortured. Ireland’s Ambassador to Egypt herself undertook a consular visit on 30 March during which this citizen was able to talk freely with her. Based on the facts established by the Ambassador through direct contact with this citizen himself, the reports of torture were unfounded.
I am also aware of the unfair and unfounded suggestions that the Department is failing to act or doing less because of this citizen’s name or because of his heritage. I would like to reassure the Deputy that any assertion that my Department is treating this citizen less favourably than it might treat another Irish citizen is utterly untrue and completely contradicted by the record of the Department’s actions to date in this case.
I am also aware of various calls for additional action by the Government. We keep all aspects of this case, including the Department’s own approach under review. However, at all times, the key consideration for me and my Department has been, and will continue to be, to ensure that any action that is taken is in this citizen’s best interests.
Given that the trial has now commenced and a petition for Ibrahim’s release on bail is now currently being considered by the Egyptian courts we would not propose to be making further public comment on this case at this time. This is entirely consistent with our approach in other cases. As you know, where Irish citizens are charged with offences abroad, it is the foreign court which decides matters such as bail and release. Just as responsible public representatives here cannot interfere with legal cases ongoing before the Irish courts, Ireland cannot directly intervene in cases before foreign courts. However, I would like to assure the deputy that officials in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, both in Dublin and in Cairo, remain in ongoing contact with this individual and his family, and will continue to offer full consular support. We will continue to engage appropriately with the Egyptian authorities, will remain resolute in seeking to protect the interests of the citizen concerned and will do all possible to achieve a positive outcome.
