Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Since the coming into force of the Lisbon treaty, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Baroness Catherine Ashton, conducts the Union's common foreign and security policy assisted by the European External Action Service. The EU's common security and defence policy forms an integral part of the Union's common foreign and security policy. In the area of common security and defence policy, the role of the Presidency is now centred on supporting the High Representative and the European External Action Service in this regard. This arrangement provides Ireland with a significant opportunity to influence the common security and defence policy agenda.

As part of Ireland's Presidency of the European Council 2013, I prioritised a number of areas to progress during our Presidency. These priorities included preparations for the European Council meeting in December 2013, which will discuss security and defence issues and which comprised a meeting of Heads of State, continued development of EU common security and defence policy, enhancing EU-UN relations, EU co-operation in the area of maritime security and surveillance, addressing the impact of the financial crisis on defence through pooling and sharing, and support for jobs, growth and innovation through focusing on the role of small and medium-sized enterprises, SMEs, in fostering innovation in the security sector.

In relation to progress made during the Presidency, the key event was the informal meeting of Defence Ministers held in Dublin Castle in February last. At my invitation, the UN Under-Secretary General in the department of peacekeeping operations attended the meeting. This was the first time that the UN was represented at a meeting of EU Defence Ministers. The Secretary General of NATO, on his first formal visit to Ireland, also attended the meeting. A range of issues were discussed, including the upcoming European Council on defence, Mali, the Horn of Africa and partnerships between the EU and the United Nations.

Three very successful seminars have also been held in Ireland. The first seminar was on the topic of co-operation between regional organisations and the United Nations in the area of crisis management, peace support and peace enforcement operations. The second seminar dealt with the issue of maritime security and surveillance and the third seminar dealt with the upcoming European Council meeting on defence to be held in December 2013.

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A further seminar was held in Brussels in conjunction with the European Defence Agency on countering the threat from improvised explosive devices, IEDs. A second seminar will also be held in Brussels later this week, which will be hosted by the Irish Presidency, in association with the Estonian Ministry of Defence and the European Defence Agency. This seminar will deal with the issue of cyber-security co-operation in the European Union and advance the debate on European Union member states' preparedness to face cyber threats at national level and across the EU as a whole.

The outcomes of all seminars held to date have been very positive and these seminars have stimulated debate and advanced the work of the EU institutions in these areas. The defence priorities have centred on how Ireland and the Union as a whole can contribute to international peace and security and the enhancement of the EU's common security and defence policy, which are central to ensuring the security and safety of our citizens.

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