Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I share the Deputy's concerns. There are thousands of UN peacekeepers in dozens of countries across the world where civilians, in particular women and children, rely on UN peacekeepers to protect them. If that protection becomes exploitation at times, that cannot be allowed to go unchecked and we need to address it comprehensively. I think the UN is attempting to address this comprehensively. There are undoubtedly cases, some of which the Deputy has referred to, that have happened as recently as the past number of years. There needs to be a new and absolute no tolerance approach towards sexual exploitation and abuse that involves UN peacekeepers. I am glad to say that there is no evidence to suggest that Irish troops have been involved in any of this. Having said that, we are part of the UN structures as a whole and we need to be part of the solution here.

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