Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The issue of military assistance and de-mining is at an early stage. The Minister for Defence, Deputy Coveney, would be in a better position to discuss that. We welcome the agreement reached to established an EU military assistance mission in support of Ukraine. Ireland is engaging with Ukraine at present to assess how best to respond to its specific request for support in the area of de-mining where, as the Taoiseach noted last week we have some expertise. To be fair, the Ukrainians have severe needs and the whole area of mines is the classic civilian problem both during wartime and thereafter, where ordinary people are put at risk because of the mines that have been planted. We have some expertise and that help could be provided through the EU military assistance mission but there is work to be done on that. The Minister for Defence and the Taoiseach undoubtedly will be able to provide the Dáil with further information.

As I stated in respect of energy, a lot has been achieved. I have already listed out what has been achieved to Deputy O'Donoghue and more work is ongoing. The Deputy is correct that the Heads of Government and State will return to this issue in December. It is important work and takes time. The fact that there can be disagreements or complexities around this issue is a feature rather than a flaw of the European system. We are working together to protect all of our national interests, all of which are important, but we also realise the importance of working together as member states of the European Union, contrary to what Deputy Mattie McGrath alleges, at all European debates, about there being some kind of conspiracy. We should try to keep conspiracy theories out of the Dáil and this whole thing about globalism is a conspiracy theory. There is no conspiracy. The governments try to work together for their peoples in the knowledge that by doing so, we get better results for the European people as a whole. We in Ireland have a specific situation in respect of gas because our gas supply is not connected to the continental European market, and we must protect that. To be fair to the other member states, they recognise that. When you start looking around the table, however, you see that each country or region has its own specificities that must be addressed as well. We are not unique in that regard.

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