Tom Kitt (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)

I can assure the Deputy as to the pay and conditions on the ship because that is part and parcel of the standards that apply in this situation. With regard to the recent incidents in Chad, in early February and on 1 April, fighting took place between Chadian forces and rebels. EUFOR personnel were not involved in these incidents. EUFOR has no role in the protection of the sovereign territory of Chad. Incursions by rebel forces are a matter for the Chadian authorities and do not fall within the remit of the EU mission. An awful lot of work is currently going on with EUFOR conducting an information campaign within its area of operations. The purpose of the campaign is to promote EUFOR's credibility, will and capability to fulfil its mission. The campaign is being conducted by means of leaflet hand-outs and radio advertisements. Clearly, much good ground-breaking communications work is going on at present. To answer the Deputy's other question, it is all being done in the context of preparatory work, making ourselves familiar with the local community, ensuring that everybody sees Irish emblems, such as Irish flags flying on vehicles, using radios and leaflets, and using our military information officers to get the message across.

I noted the Deputy's comments on the rainy season and I accept that he is correct in that regard. Full deployment will be achieved by the end of May. Prior to full deployment, my officials are anxious to ensure a full briefing for the spokespersons present here.

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