Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. With regard to the forthcoming elections, I read some time ago that the security situation, particularly in northern Mali, remained very unstable. Is the Minister of State confident that enough stability has been achieved to ensure free and fair elections? As we know, French forces intervened in Mali in early January to prevent Islamic forces from overwhelming the country. It has been claimed, I believe with some justification, that it was essentially unilateral French action to intervene in its old colonial area of influence that drove on the EU rather than a multilateral intervention decided by the EU. Does the Minister of State agree with the comment of the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, some time ago that the EU was found wanting in respect of its Common Security and Defence Policy, CSDP?

See this speech in context