Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

My Department has nine civil servants serving with a number of different missions abroad as follows: one principal officer based in Brussels whose responsibilities span the delegation of Ireland to the Political and Security Committee and the liaison office of Ireland for Partnership for Peace, who also acts as a representative to European Defence Agency; an assistant principal officer who works full time as part of the delegation of Ireland to the Political and Security Committee; an assistant principal officer whose responsibilities span the liaison office of Ireland for Partnership for Peace and the European Defence Agency; an assistant principal officer who is a seconded national expert to the European Council, Athena Financing Mechanism; one higher executive officer who serves in the liaison office of Ireland for Partnership for Peace; one administrative officer is attached to EULEX Kosovo mission in the role of administrative reporting officer; one executive officer in the delegation of Ireland to the Political and Security Committee; one clerical officer in the liaison office of Ireland for Partnership for Peace; and one senior first secretary who is on temporary secondment from the Department Foreign Affairs as political adviser to the Chad operation commander of the force, General Nash based in Paris.

It is not my intention to increase the number at the present time.

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