Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
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Question 143: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the Government will move beyond its position of qualified support for the idea of an arms trade treaty and join the 50 countries that have declared their full support for the treaty under consideration; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7111/06]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland's support for the concept of an international arms trade treaty is unqualified. The process of negotiating such a treaty is, however, likely to be lengthy and complex and it is not at this stage possible to forecast when, or in what form, a final text might emerge. The General Affairs and External Relations Council of the European Union, at its meeting on 3 October 2005, acknowledged the growing support throughout the world for an international treaty to establish common standards for the global trade in conventional arms. The Council also agreed that binding standards, consistent with the existing responsibilities of states under relevant international law, would be critical in tackling proliferation. It was further agreed that the United Nations was the only forum that could deliver a truly universal instrument, and the Council called for the start of a formal process at the UN at the earliest opportunity. As I made clear in my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 135 of 10 November 2005, Ireland fully supports this approach and believes that it is the best way for taking this issue forward. Ireland strongly supports the process of developing strict controls on arms and will continue to participate actively within the UN and at other international fora to promote the objective of strengthening arms controls globally. At a small arms conference in New York last month, the Austrian Presidency, on behalf of all EU member states, confirmed the Union's support for an arms trade treaty.