Seán Haughey (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the ambassadors for taking the trouble to come to Dublin this morning. We really appreciate it. I assure them that our proceedings are being broadcast, so their contributions are being witnessed by many more people than are here this morning.

Ireland supports European Union enlargement as a general principle, as was said. We believe in enlargement. When we joined the EU, in 1973, it was transformative for our country. We have not looked back since and we do not want to pull up the ladder and let nobody else in. We think it is good for the EU and would be good for the witnesses' nation states to be in the EU. The witnesses outlined some of the histories of their countries. As the Chairman said, they are complicated and long histories and are why the countries are where they are today. Enlargement, as regards the western Balkans, would be so important from a strategic point of view as well as from the point of security and defence. I think the witnesses touched on that in their contributions.

As for President Macron's European Political Community, I assume that both witnesses' countries were represented at its meeting which took place last week. What are their thoughts on that forum and that initiative? Do they think it is a good initiative? Is it a further stepping stone to full EU membership, from their point of view? That is my first question.

My second question is about what assistance the EU has, in the ambassadors' opinion, given to their nation states to date, whether monetary or other types of assistance. I will have one or two more questions after the ambassadors reply.