Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for their questions.

Regarding Deputy Haughey's questions first, it is the case that Irish delegation rooms were used for talks involving the key players trying to secure agreement on the language, particularly relating to Ukraine, although that was done entirely for logistical reasons. It just so happened we had a room free and we were near the other delegation rooms.

As the House will know, the United Kingdom is not in the European Union anymore, so it had no input into the EU-CELAC declaration.

In terms of Mercosur, the agreement, as the House will know, is designed to cement the close political and economic relations between the EU and Mercosur countries and represents a commitment to rules-based international trade. Since formal negotiations concluded, the global trade policy has changed considerably. The rise in protectionism, the economic impacts of Covid-19, the war in Ukraine and the accompanying impacts on global supply chains have demonstrated the importance of diversifying our import and export markets by securing robust and competitive trade deals with global partners. Ireland remains committed to free, fair and open trade, and forging greater economic links with the Mercosur region will assist us in our objective of market diversification. Negotiating and ratifying free trade agreements, FTAs, requires continued engagement and outreach with various stakeholders to allay underlying concerns and to ensure the FTAs agreed are balanced and consider EU priorities across all sectors.

Ireland and a number of other member states have raised concerns regarding the strength of the trade and sustainability commitments in the agreement, and discussions are ongoing between the chief negotiators from Mercosur and the EU on a joint interpretative instrument. The Government strongly encourages both sides to intensify discussions and come to an agreement during the Commission’s mandate. I do not know if that will be possible, but without a joint interpretative instrument that gives us the assurances we need on the environment and sustainability, we will not be able to support the ratification of the agreement.

Regarding the Amazon, President Lula da Silva gave us an update on the work that he has been doing to slow down the loss of the Amazon and reverse it. I think it is fair to say that he is taking a very different approach from his predecessor, one that is much more favourable to the world’s climate and biodiversity concerns.

Ireland condemns the military escalation in Nagorno-Karabakh. We are closely monitoring developments. The actions come on top of an already dire humanitarian situation following a months-long blockade that has prevented essential supplies from reaching the local population. We welcome the news of a ceasefire and we back EU calls for restraint on all sides. We hope the ceasefire will be respected and will allow a genuine dialogue to take place. However, we are concerned about a large exodus of ethnic Armenians from the region. This will require a European response. The issue was not discussed at the EU-CELAC meeting, but I expect it will be discussed at the European Political Community meeting next week, which both Azerbaijan and Armenia are likely to attend.

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