Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Could the Minister point to examples of how our traditional policy of independence in foreign affairs has had a positive influence on the development of the EU's common security and foreign policy? I do not see it. The one example we had of the development of the policy was our abstention from the UN vote over the summer on the conflict in Gaza, which sent a very negative message to Palestinians. Given the very strong role we have traditionally played on the world stage regarding the conflict in the Middle East, aligning ourselves with the interests of France, Germany and England did nothing to develop the relationship.

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