Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 88: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number of Irish citizens living in Afghanistan; if records will indicate their safety and security; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26851/05]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Foreign Affairs is aware of 29 Irish citizens, including seven Irish troops serving with the International Security Assistance Force contingent living and working in Afghanistan. The personnel concerned, who also include 14 people with dual Irish and other citizenship, work mainly with non-governmental and international organisations.

There is a standing arrangement, provided for in the treaties on the European Union, whereby citizens of any EU country may seek consular assistance from embassies of other EU member states in countries where that country does not have a resident mission. In this regard, there is a particular arrangement in place in Kabul for Irish citizens with the British Embassy. Given the dangerous security situation there, the Department is advising strongly against non-essential travel to Kabul, and against all travel to other parts of Afghanistan.

Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Question 91: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the position regarding the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26870/05]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The major priority in the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, continues to be the organisation of national elections early next year which will mark the culmination of the transition process inaugurated by the 2002 Sun City peace accords. These local, legislative and presidential elections are expected to take place between March and May 2006. Voter registration is under way, with 13.6 million people already registered out of an estimated potential electorate of 20 million. A referendum on the draft constitution approved by the transitional national assembly last May is planned before the end of this year.

The successful holding of national elections in the DRC, the first in over 40 years, will be a major undertaking. Substantial international support will be required for the elections which are likely to cost in the region of US$400 million to organise. These elections are important, not only for the future stability and democratic development of the DRC but also for ensuring peace and security throughout the Great Lakes region as a whole. The EU and its member states have made substantial contributions in support of the electoral process with the European Commission alone pledging some €150 million. I was pleased to be able to announce a national contribution of €500,000 by Ireland in support of the DRC electoral process during my recent meeting with the Foreign Minister of the DRC, Mr. Raymond Ramazani Baya, at the UN General Assembly.

During my meeting with Mr. Ramazani Baya, I urged the DRC Government to accelerate progress towards completion of the transition process, including the speedy adoption of an electoral law to govern the forthcoming elections. We also discussed the security situation in eastern DRC which remains serious and the need to complete disarmament of the remaining armed militia groups which continue to pose a serious threat there. The DRC Government and armed forces work in close conjunction with MONUC, the UN peacekeeping mission, to confront the armed militias groups and hasten their disarmament. The problem which these militia groups pose has been compounded in recent weeks by the arrival of 300 or 400 Lord's Resistance Army, LRA, rebels from northern Uganda. Both MONUC and the Congolese army deserve the support of the international community for their efforts. I hope the UN Security Council will consider favourably Mr. Annan's recent request for an additional 2,600 troops to enhance MONUC's capacity for supporting disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration of former combatants.

The DRC Government also needs to hasten progress in the area of security sector reform, particularly with regard to completing the creation of a fully integrated national army and police force and effectively establishing its authority throughout the DRC. This is particularly important if a secure environment is to be created for the holding of national elections. The EU actively supports the process of security sector reform in the DRC through deployment of two EU missions. EUPOL offers advice and mentoring to the integrated police unit, IPU, in Kinshasa which the EU has helped establish. Ireland has contributed €75,000 towards the costs of establishing the IPU. A second mission, EUSEC DRC, comprises a small planning team to advise key government ministries in the DRC on all issues related to security sector reform. EUSEC DRC has made considerable progress in its work and plays a particularly important role in identifying ways to improve administration and command throughout the DRC army and ensure proper payment and rationing of troops.

It is equally important, however, that neighbouring countries, in particular, Uganda and Rwanda, do all they can to end the threat posed by the armed militia groups in eastern DRC, support completion of the transition in the DRC and improve bilateral relations throughout the region. The regional dimension to the conflict remains crucial and underlines the importance of the Great Lakes conference process, the second summit of which will take place in Nairobi in December. Ireland is an active member of the Group of Friends of the Great Lakes which supports the conference process and was represented by Minister of State Lenihan at a recent ministerial meeting in New York to discuss preparations for the second summit.