Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

I congratulate the Taoiseach on the gong he received in Poland, which was well deserved. It is a very heavy schedule to maintain, travelling across the world while also focusing on anti-social behaviour in Dublin Central.

The Taoiseach was in Bulgaria a few days before it became known that the country facilitated an international money laundering operation. Did the matter arise, or did the Taoiseach have any knowledge of it before he went there? Was the matter touched on during his discussions with the Bulgarian authorities? What is the current position with regard to the matter? Is there any basis for this or is it part of the ongoing investigation?

With regard to the EU-US meeting, did the Taoiseach have a bilateral meeting with President Bush? Can he tell us what was discussed at that meeting? Was the reported US threat to Iran on the basis of its supposed nuclear programme discussed with President Bush during the EU-US or bilateral meetings?

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