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

The Deputy has asked two very different questions. I have answered the first question: there are no large-scale stocks of weapons travelling through Shannon Airport. There are not. The US sometimes uses Shannon Airport for refuelling to bring personnel from one part of the world to another, and not with their weapons. When the US seeks exemptions, we are talking about light weapons that are for personal security reasons and so on, and not about soldiers with their weaponry heading for parts of the Middle East or wherever. That is not how it is.

On the mission in Mali, peacekeeping is dangerous. As Minister for Defence, of course it is my job to ensure that we look after the safety of our own personnel and our peacekeepers, that they are trained and equipped, and that they are not put into a theatre of conflict where the risk profile has not been fully examined first. Mali is a dangerous part of the world. It is a very complex country and we are there to try to help to bring stability to the Sahel region and to Mali in particular. We are involved in two missions there: a UN mission and an EU mission. The EU mission is a training mission where our Defence Forces personnel are training Malian troops to protect themselves and their people. Our UN mission has an Army Ranger Wing element because it is a complex mission. I understand that they are doing an excellent job and are managing the risk appropriately.

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