Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Vice Chairman and members for their questions. I will go through each of them in turn. I will start with the questions raised by my colleague Deputy O'Reilly in respect of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The theme was echoed by several others, including Deputy Dooley, Deputy Eric Byrne and Deputy Durkan - all the committee members. It reflects the broad interest that the committee and the country have in the issue. It also reflects the size of the Bosnian community here and the circumstances in which our country facilitated their arrival at a time of great difficulty for them, something which did great credit to the then leaders of our country in terms of how they handled it.

I was in Sarajevo some weeks before the unrest broke out. One thing I did in Sarajevo was to organise and speak at a public meeting in the University of Sarajevo at which any students, members of the public or organisations were free and welcome to turn up. I experienced at first hand at that meeting the serious level of concern that people young, old and in between have regarding the future of their country. I was, therefore, saddened to see how it was articulated in the riots that the committee members have referred to and the difficulties that arose.

Members also referred to the engagement of the European Union with Bosnia-Herzegovina. There is a view that the focus of the European Union was too preoccupied with the requirement for co-ordinating mechanisms to be set up to allow greater efficiency in dealings between Bosnia-Herzegovina and the European Union.

When I attended the public event in Sarajevo I met a member of the Jewish community who is not currently permitted to stand for any public office in Bosnia-Herzegovina. If the European Union is about anything, it is about equality and opportunity for everyone, regardless of ethnicity, religion or community. This is a demanding objective to which we struggle to aspire and which we do our best to deliver. It is a core value of the European Union and it is correctly the focus of Mr. Sorensen and the European Council and the Foreign Affairs Council.

In light of events, members have questioned whether that position can be developed and if further focus should be given to Bosnia-Herzegovina specifically. We must acknowledge the role of the EU in the great progress made in the Western Balkans in general. I refer to the results delivered by the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, the courage of the people and the leadership of their leaders in Kosovo and Serbia. I refer to the role of the Government of Croatia in bringing Croatia to full membership of the European Union. The European Union in this region is delivering results of real worth to the people in the different communities of the Western Balkans.

Since I was there, the Commissioner has returned to the area at least once. The violence occurred during the period of that visit. I refer to the developments resulting from the EU engagement in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The structured dialogue is the means by which the EU Commission engages directly with the federal Executive in BIH and this has been broadened to include measures to tackle corruption. There has been a renewed focus on the issue of economic governance in the country. More support will be given to the leaders and government to allow them to assist in drawing down EU funding. We need to recognise the difficulties faced by the people in the communities in Bosnia-Herzegovina. This has to be reciprocated and matched by leadership and by the Government of Bosnia-Herzegovina responding to the European Union's work.

We know from our own experience in Ireland that the best response to difficulties are those delivered by the people elected to respond to the difficulties and for whom the European Union cannot be a substitute. We work with the democratically elected leaders and we need and expect them to continue to demonstrate leadership.

I refer to points raised by Deputies O'Reilly and Dooley about the proposed banking union. Negotiations between the Presidency and the European Parliament are currently under way on the nature and funding of the single resolution mechanism. At last week's ECOFIN meeting a renewed mandate was granted to the Presidency to achieve agreement on this area before the end of the term of the current European Parliament. Deputy O'Reilly raised the issue of banking debt and I have discussed this issue with Deputy Dooley on many occasions and will continue to do so. We will continue to pursue all options for dealing with the portion of our national debt created by the need to support the banking system at a very vulnerable time and banking union is an important element.

I have answered the questions about new developments for the expansion of the structured dialogue and the economic governance and the support for the drawing down of EU funding. I was asked about the Minister of State, Deputy White's visit to Moscow. He still plans to travel to Moscow to attend events to support the Irish community there. The Government has a role in recognising that community and supporting it on an important day being celebrated a long way from home. His visit will consist of engagements associated with the Irish community and with the embassy. It is absolutely appropriate that we reach out to Irish communities working all over the world and his visit is undertaken in that spirit. We will be asserting our view on the situation in Crimea and in Ukraine, as the Tánaiste and this committee expressed to the Russian ambassador. While making our views clear on the situation in Ukraine, we must do so in an environment in which dialogue is possible. The Minister of State goes to Moscow in that spirit. We will make our views clear on developments in Ukraine.

Deputy Eric Byrne raised the issue of the Swiss vote. He asked whether there are any consequences of that decision.

The answer to that question is "Yes". I am not aware of the particular point the Deputy made in respect of individuals. However, there have been consequences in terms of the ability of Switzerland to access and gain support from the Horizon 2020 and Erasmus programmes. The Government and the General Affairs Council have both stated that it is now up to the relevant Swiss bodies to decide how they will respond to the referendum. I understand that the framework the Swiss have for doing this spans three years. What we will do is emphasise now that any action which impacts on a core European value, namely, freedom of movement, will be the subject of substantial consequences. However, we must wait to see what action will be taken within Switzerland in response to the vote by its people.

I completely agree with the point to the effect that it is important for the relationship between Africa and the EU to develop and broaden. I would make the point - this struck me as I was making my opening contribution - that while I believe it is extremely important to broaden our relationships, in the context of investment and trade, in the areas to which reference was made, we will also continue to focus on development policy and on the kind of work Ireland, Irish aid, volunteers and NGOs do very well. We should also focus on the trade and investment agenda, recognising the fact that the leaders of many African states want to engage at that level and their ambassadors have indicated as much. In view of the developments across the continent of Africa - the phrase "African renaissance" has been used in this regard - there is a need for a changed relationship. The Minister of State, Deputy Costello, and the Tánaiste are leading the work relating to this matter and are well aware of what is required.

Deputy Eric Byrne also raised a number of points in respect of the situation in Ukraine and I will respond to each of them in turn. There are no parallels between what happened in Kosovo and the situation in Crimea. What we believe should happen is that people should independently make their own decisions with regard to the future of their communities and the parts of the country in which they live. This should be done in a manner that is consistent with the law of their country and with broader international law. What is taking place in Crimea does not meet either requirement. In other words, it is not consistent with international or Ukrainian law. I need hardly state that the developments and events which took place in the region prior to this vote also show how very different it is to other countries and regions in the western Balkans and the way these have developed in the recent past.

On the activities of snipers and the origin of the ammunition used to murder people, I do not wish to comment on the details involved. However, I welcome the fact that an impartial independent investigation will be carried out into this and related matters. As I have stated on previous occasions, we have always believed that restraint must be demonstrated by everybody and that there is a greater responsibility on those who are in government and who control police and armed forces to exercise particular restraint in terms of how the latter are used. We welcome the fact that an independent investigation will take place in respect of some of the matters to which reference was made.

The Deputy also referred to the holding of elections. Of course, these are taking place within a country - this could also be said for the wider region - that is very volatile at present. We are of the opinion that the only way inclusive political arrangements can be put in place is through the holding of elections in the first instance. It is clear that there is a diversity of views within Ukraine and I need hardly tell the Deputy that the ballot box is the best way to resolve matters.

Deputy Durkan referred to Bosnia-Herzegovina and climate change. I have already touched on the former. In the context of the latter, the key point of difference - as has been the case in the past - is that while binding targets remain in place across the EU, member states are meant to have greater flexibility in the context of how they deliver their share of a binding EU-wide target. That is why the Government has been placing particular emphasis on the very large agricultural component of our economy, on our future plans for our national herd and on how our land use generates certain things which, for us, must be recognised in these national plans.

I have also already touched on the point the Deputy made in respect of trade. He is aware of the decision made in respect of GMO maize at the General Affairs Council's previous meeting. I voted against the proposal which was on the table at that point.

The Vice Chairman referred to the rule of law. The initiative in this regard involves putting in place an instrument which will be as strong but not as hugely powerful as other such instruments which currently hold sway, to deal with issues relating to freedom of the press, the independence of institutions and free speech. The initiative relates to issues as diverse as xenophobia, the growth in hate crime and extreme intolerance. There are worrying signs that the latter is prevalent in small portions of the European Union and that it is arising in the context of political debate taking place at present. The initiative in question emanates from the Commission and is a response to the difficulty to which I refer. It was published yesterday and will be the subject of some initial debate at next week's meeting of the General Affairs Council.

On current treaties and whether this is an issue which is shared by everybody, different countries have different views. Many countries share our view that the existing treaties offer the tools required to deal with many of the political issues arising at present. I re-emphasise my own view that many of the political difficulties which have arisen are a consequence of the economic crisis. I remain of the opinion that we should continue to invest our energies in dealing with that crisis in the first instance.

The Vice Chairman's final point was about whether the difficulties in Ukraine demonstrate the ineffectiveness of European Union foreign policy. The European Union only has at its disposal the competences which member states choose to give it. We should not be criticising the European Union in the context of powers and competences it does not possess and which member states decided not to give it. The European Union put forward the association agreement with Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine and both Georgia and Moldova signed it. If one considers the efficacy and strength of the European Union's foreign policy and the instruments available in that regard at present, one will discover that an example of the strong successes it has enjoyed is the agreement between Serbia and Kosovo. Until recently, many commentators thought such an agreement would be exceptionally difficult to achieve. Another example in this regard is the rule the EU is currently playing in the negotiations taking place in respect of Iran in the context of weapons, etc. There continue to be difficulties but High Representative Ashton is playing an exceptionally prominent role in respect of that matter. I am certain that the European Union - in the context of next week's meetings of the General Affairs Council and the Foreign Affairs Council - will continue to demonstrate that using the tools member states have made available it can continue to play a strong and positive role in dealing with the difficulties in Ukraine.