Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The question of US policy in Iraq is a matter for the United States. I point out that all troops there are there at the request of the democratically elected Iraqi Government on foot of UN resolutions, so we have moved on considerably from the initial situation. These are matters for the bilateral arrangements that exist between the Iraqi Government and the United States, as regards what is best in the interests of the US and the security of Iraq. That is an important consideration for that region and indeed for the wider world.

As regards Shannon, we of course do not accept there is any extraordinary rendition, nor is there any evidence of such going on through Irish airports. We accept fully the assurances that we have been given at the highest level of the US Administration regarding that fact. We are simply, as I indicated in a previous statement, seeking a general policy statement for the future from the incoming Administration. We are taking the opportunity of a change in the US Administration to see whether that is available to us as a means of assuaging any public concerns in this area and also to reiterate the well-established policy position of our Government on these matters.

As regards what the Minister for Foreign Affairs had to say, obviously he and his Department have been monitoring the speeches and statements of President-elect Obama during the course of the campaign. He has indicated his approach in broad terms to work with partners throughout the world to deal with many of the global issues, recognising that the United States has a leadership role to play. We should allow a settling in period for the new Administration, hear an enunciation of its policy positions and then work with it in so far as we can. The Minister for Foreign Affairs was simply indicating his hope that there are good grounds for believing we shall see the type of approach emanating that he flagged in his interview, based on the speeches his Department has monitored during the course of this campaign.

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