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

I attended a meeting of the European Council on 26 and 27 October in Brussels. The agenda covered the Middle East, Ukraine and other external matters, as well as economic issues and migration. A Euro summit also took place. In his contribution later, the Minister of State, Deputy Burke, will provide further detail on migration, as well as some of the external relations issues discussed. These included the Sahel, Serbia and Kosovo, Armenia and Azerbaijan, preparations for COP28, and damage to critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea. I will deal with all other issues.

Our meeting took place against a deteriorating situation in Gaza, as Israel intensified its response to Hamas's terrorist attack of 7 October. As the House will be all too aware, it has become significantly worse in the period since. We had a long and at times difficult discussion given the very different perspectives and views around the table. We managed to reach agreement on a set of conclusions in which we reaffirmed our statement of 15 October. We condemned Hamas for its brutal and indiscriminate attack, acknowledged Israel's right to defend herself in line with international humanitarian law, called on Hamas to release all hostages without precondition and expressed our continuing commitment to a lasting and sustainable peace based on a two-state solution. We reviewed the ongoing work to safeguard civilians and bring about an end to this conflict, including our efforts to assist EU citizens in the region. We expressed our grave concern at the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, calling for continued, rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access and aid, including through humanitarian corridors and pauses for humanitarian needs.

As is becoming increasingly common in conflict situations, along with conflict on the ground there is a parallel war of words and opinions online. Accurate information can be hard to get. Recognising this, the European Council noted the importance of combatting the dissemination of disinformation and illegal content.

While it was possible for the 27 member states to align themselves around important issues of principle in the conclusions, given the diversity of opinion, EU member states voted differently when it came to the adoption of a resolution by the General Assembly of the United Nations later, on 27 October, calling for a humanitarian truce. Ireland voted in favour of the resolution alongside Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain, as did other like-minded European countries, including Switzerland, Norway, Andorra, Liechtenstein and Montenegro. Most other EU member states abstained, with Austria, Czechia, Hungary and Croatia voting against. We will continue to engage with international partners, both within the EU and beyond, to seek to bring an end to the conflict and to bring humanitarian relief to the people in Gaza whose profound suffering we are witnessing daily.

I utterly condemn Hamas for its brutal and provocative terrorist attack. The description of what it perpetrated against innocent civilians at a music festival, on a kibbutz and in their homes in the early morning is almost beyond imagining. It was a pogrom. I stand in complete sympathy with those who lost family members, those who suffered horrible injuries and those who do not, even now, know the fate of their loved ones. We remember Kim Damti whose mother is from County Laois and I have Emily Hand and her family very much in my thoughts also. Hamas should immediately release all hostages without precondition.

I have been equally clear that Israel’s response must be in line with international humanitarian law. That means a proportionate approach and all steps must be taken to protect civilians. The scale of death, injury and destruction in Gaza is horrifying. The large number of children who have been killed or who have witnessed the death of parents and other family members or seen the destruction of their family homes is particularly disturbing. This is trauma they will carry with them for the rest of their lives and it will not make Israel more secure in the long term. I was especially horrified at the high number of civilian casualties following Israel’s bombing of the Jabalia refugee camp. I extend my condolences to the family and friends of the heroic UN and other aid workers who have been killed as they have sought to help the people in Gaza and to those of journalists who have lost their lives working to bring the situation to world attention.

Ultimately, there can be no solution to situations of conflict without dialogue and diplomacy and no solution other than a just and lasting peace. It is therefore important that diplomatic channels are kept open, including engaging with Israel through its embassy in Dublin and through our embassy in Tel Aviv. Such channels are important in normal times but they are especially so at times of conflict and tension, not least as we continue our efforts to enable all Irish citizens in Gaza to leave safely should they wish to do so.

Ireland will continue to engage with international partners, especially in the region, to avoid escalation and to bring hostilities to an end. We have already seen a concerning increase in violence and deaths in the West Bank, including increased incidents of settler violence and displacement of Palestinian communities. We have seen a disturbing rise in anti-Semitism and Islamophobia around the world, as well as terrorist attacks in Belgium and France. We have seen increased tension between northern Israel and southern Lebanon in areas where Irish members of the Defence Forces are serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL. We must all continue to work for peace and to call for political leadership on all sides to make it possible.

While the situation in Palestine is naturally demanding global attention, Russia is continuing to prosecute its war of imperialist aggression against the people of Ukraine. There too civilians are suffering as cities, towns and villages, as well as civilian infrastructure, are deliberately targeted. The situation in Ukraine must continue to have our attention. Have no doubt, Russia will seek to gain whatever advantage it can if it thinks we are distracted by events elsewhere. This point was highlighted in our discussion of Ukraine and we reaffirmed our unwavering solidarity with Ukraine and our commitment to its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. We will continue to assist Ukraine for as long as it takes and until victory.

Leaders considered a range of topics, including continuing to provide sustainable assistance to Ukraine through the European Peace Facility and the EU military assistance mission, as well as bilateral assistance. We also agreed that in the longer term, the EU will contribute to security guarantees for Ukraine to help it defend itself, resist destabilisation efforts and deter acts of aggression in the future. The Council has invited High Representative Borrell to consult with Ukraine on this and to report back to the European Council meeting in December.

Ukraine faces another difficult winter. Leaders agreed to intensify provision of humanitarian and civil protection assistance. Such assistance will include power generators, transformers, mobile heating stations and high-voltage lighting equipment to support the Ukrainian people in the months ahead. To date, Ireland has provided more than €210 million in assistance to the Ukrainian people. This has comprised more than €90 million in stabilisation and humanitarian aid and €122 million in non-lethal military assistance under the European Peace Facility. Ireland’s assistance to Ukraine is directed exclusively towards non-lethal aid and this policy will be maintained into the future. We will also continue to intensify diplomatic outreach efforts to ensure the widest possible international support for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace. Ireland firmly endorses President Zelenskyy’s peace formula. It is up to Ukraine to determine the terms, conditions and timelines for any peace engagement.

While peace is the priority, once it is achieved, our work will not be done. Ukraine must be rebuilt and Russia held to account. Ukraine’s future, like that of its neighbours in Moldova and Georgia, is in the European Union. I look forward to reading the report of the European Commission on the steps Ukraine has taken to prepare for membership, which we will consider at the meeting of the European Council before Christmas. I hope it will prove possible for accession negotiations to start by the end of the year.

The October European Council held a political discussion on the proposed revision of the EU’s long-term budget, the multi-annual financial framework, MFF, which runs from 2021 to 2027. Exchanges were informed by a stocktaking document prepared by the Spanish Presidency summarising the progress made to date. While most members share the goal to reach an agreement as soon as possible, not all share the same political priorities and there are diverging views on the financing options. The mid-term revision proposed by the Commission in June was based on an overall amount of close to €100 billion, of which two thirds would be new contributions from member states and one third would correspond to new loans to Ukraine guaranteed by the EU. There is broad agreement on providing for sustainable multi-annual funding to Ukraine of €50 billion, comprising €33 billion in loans and €17 billion in grants. Ireland is strongly in favour of reaching agreement on a multi-annual funding package for Ukraine as soon as possible.

There are diverging views among member states on the other elements of the proposed package, including the extent to which there may be further potential for redeployments from unallocated funds to new priorities. These other elements of the Commission’s proposals cover spending on agreed political priorities such as migration and external action, investments in strategic technologies, as well as technical adjustments such as increased interest costs on Next Generation EU borrowings. Leaders invited the Council to continue its work at both technical and political levels, with a view to reaching an overall agreement by the end of the year. Ireland will continue to engage constructively to this end.

Leaders also returned to economic and competitiveness issues more generally, including the Single Market, industrial policy and energy. The European Council underlined the need to accelerate work on developing the EU’s competitive edge in digital and clean technologies, securing a sufficient supply of clean and affordable energy, reducing key critical dependencies, diversifying supply chains through strategic partnerships and fostering the transition towards a more circular economy. Important elements include prompt agreement on the critical raw materials Act, the net-zero industry Act and the reform of the electricity market. Ireland continues to highlight in this context the importance of safeguarding the Single Market and the level playing field among the member states on which it is built, as well as improving the framework conditions for investment.

Ireland endorses the goal of a reformed economic governance framework that is simpler and more transparent, with greater national ownership guiding more effective implementation, including through necessary public investments. I therefore welcome the European Council’s invitation to ministers to take work forward on the economic governance review, with a view to reaching an agreement by the end of the year. We were briefed in the Euro Summit format by the President of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, and the President of the Eurogroup, the Minister, Deputy Paschal Donohoe. Our exchanges focused on the economic and financial situation in the Union, including co-ordination of fiscal policies, banking union, capital markets union and preparations for the possible introduction of the digital euro.

I will travel to Brussels again in December for the final meeting of the European Council this year. I hope at that meeting that it will be possible to make progress on fundamental questions around the future of the EU, including the mid-term review of the MFF and EU enlargement.

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