Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 1: To ask the Minister for Defence if he has had any request to send troops to the Sudan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12521/05]

Joe Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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Question 5: To ask the Minister for Defence if Irish troops are to be deployed to the Sudan as part of a multinational peacekeeping force established to police the recent peace accord; if a formal request has been received from the UN's department of peacekeeping operations; the number of Irish troops that are likely to be deployed; the types of activities they will be involved in; the timeframe for the deployment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12525/05]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 5 together.

The United Nations department of peacekeeping operations has invited Ireland to contribute a small number of Defence Forces personnel to act as UN military observers with the recently established United Nations mission in the Sudan. The request to participate in the peacekeeping operation in the Sudan is being given the careful consideration all such requests from the UN receive. The mission is aimed to support the comprehensive peace agreement for southern Sudan which was signed by the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Army in Nairobi on 9 January 2005.

Ireland has been strongly supportive of the peace process in the Sudan generally and in the troubled region of Darfur in particular. We have provided financial support to the African Union mission, to which we have also seconded an Army officer. Ireland has also contributed considerable aid support to the Sudan. Last week the Government announced that it would provide €15 million for the recovery and reconstruction of the Sudan during the period 2005-07.

Assessment of the UN request must to take into account the numbers of Permanent Defence Force personnel available for overseas service. Currently, 750 Irish soldiers serve abroad from a total of 850 soldiers maintained under the UN stand-by arrangements system. The number of soldiers can fluctuate and stood at approximately 770 some months ago. Members of the Permanent Defence Force serve currently in eight overseas UN missions, including those in Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire, Western Sahara, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cyprus, Lebanon and the Middle East. Personnel have also been assigned to the multinational forces authorized by the Security Council in Kosovo, Bosnia Herzegovina and Afghanistan.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Does the Minister intend to supply soldiers to the Sudan mission? He did not make it clear whether he would, but said the matter was under consideration. Does he agree that the UN mandate in Darfur is ineffective? Observers from the African Union are helpless to address the atrocities which are taking place, but there are plenty of them to tell the western world what is happening. The UN mandate is ineffective because of the lack of resolve of the permanent members of the Security Council. The difficulty inherent in the Government's position on the triple lock is inherent in the requirement to wait for an organisation as ineffectively organised as the UN at Security Council level before any problem can be tackled. As the resolve does not exist in the Security Council to address this matter, I urge the Minister to make a point by refusing to supply soldiers and outlining the reasons I have stated for not doing so.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The request is the result of UN Resolution 1590 of 24 March 2005. A small number of military personnel at officer level have been requested to act as observers to the mission in southern Sudan rather than in Darfur. The Chief of Staff of the Army has circulated the Defence Forces seeking volunteers and this process will conclude on 28 April. Currently, 134 officers serve abroad. If more than 12 officers come forward, Dáil approval will have to be sought to send them overseas. The Government will have to decide, whatever number of officers volunteer, whether to send them to the Sudan and it will take a number of criteria into account. The process will involve asking how useful the mission will be to the overall situation in the Sudan and how it accords with Irish foreign policy. The most significant issue to take into account will be the level of risk associated with the mission. A risk assessment is being carried out.

Joe Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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While the Minister may have answered some of the following, I restate the questions as supplementaries. Has a formal request been received from the United Nations for soldiers for the Sudan? Has the Minister consulted with the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Conor Lenihan, who has visited the Sudan? What is the current level of troop commitment to UN duty abroad and how many soldiers are likely to be required? Will the mission involve peacekeeping or peace enforcement?

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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A formal request has been received for soldiers from the United Nations. I have consulted the Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, who has recently been to the Sudan and who has spoken to me about it in some detail. Our current commitment to UN missions abroad is 750 soldiers. According to the terms of the request we received, the mission will be a peacekeeping operation. A peace treaty has been signed and forces are necessary to maintain it.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Does the Minister agree that the UN observer mission is relatively ineffective?

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, has discussed the matter with me and expressed the view that there are serious problems with the current UN operation. It does not appear to be achieving the results we would all like to see. I agree, therefore, it is relatively ineffective. The UN has informed the Minister of State that it is attempting to take the appropriate steps to bolster the mission to make it effective.

Joe Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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I would like it to be made very clear whether the mission is one of peacekeeping or peace enforcement. The Minister is aware of the instability in the Darfur region of the Sudan. Has an assessment been carried out of the security situation? Will the Minister provide an assurance that a full security assessment will be carried out before any Irish soldiers are committed?

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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I am very happy to reassure Deputy Sherlock on the last point. We must carry out a security assessment before troops are committed to any mission. As we speak, a risk assessment operation is under way.

The Deputy asked about peacekeeping and peace enforcement, and a great deal depends on how one interprets either term. According to the data which accompanied the UN request for soldiers, it appears the mission in southern Sudan is a peacekeeping operation. Others might interpret it differently. I will ask my officials to send Deputy Sherlock the information which accompanied the request. That should be possible and it would allow the Deputy to judge the matter for himself.

Joe Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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Is the Minister of the opinion that the force should engage in peacekeeping or peace enforcement? Is there not a significant difference between peacekeeping and peace enforcement?

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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While there is a significant difference, the Deputy will be aware that the Petersberg Tasks have been expanded to encompass peace enforcement as well as peacekeeping. I understand a comprehensive peace agreement for southern Sudan was signed by the Government of Sudan and the organisation calling itself The People's Liberation Army in Nairobi on 9 January 2005. As a result of the treaty, refugees will return voluntarily and human rights will fall to be protected as people are entitled to live in peace. It is to facilitate this process that UN help has been sought. That looks like a peacekeeping operation, but whether it is peacekeeping or peace enforcement, both categories are covered under the Petersberg Tasks.