Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That is the Deputy's view, but I am saying that there is not such an embargo across Europe. The Department of Defence cannot unilaterally preclude Israeli companies from participating in tender competitions for military or any other type of goods, under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, GATT, and EU procurement law requirements. Under GATT and EU procurement law requirements, the Department of Defence is required, whether we like it or not, to deal impartially with all companies that are entitled to enter tender for competitions, and tenders must be evaluated on the basis of objective criteria.

A small number of Israeli companies have won orders for defensive equipment in recent years as result of tender competitions. This is not a new development. In each case the contract was awarded by way of a tender competition. The question of boycotts and sanctions has been debated on many occasions in the Oireachtas and there is a view that such actions would be ineffective and counterproductive. Again, the point is that we cannot unilaterally do it in the context of the GATT rules and in the context of EU rules.

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