Written answers

Wednesday, 25 October 2006

Department of Foreign Affairs

Foreign Conflicts

9:00 am

Photo of Billy TimminsBilly Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 111: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the political and security situation in Iraq; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34440/06]

Photo of Mary UptonMary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 127: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs his views on the recent call by the head of the British Armed Forces, General Sir Richard Dannatt, that occupying British troops ought to exit Iraq as a matter of urgency as their presence in the country is exacerbating the security problems there; if he agrees with this view; his further views on whether such a position was an inevitability in view of the nature of this invasion and the lack of an exit strategy to which the Irish Government was a proxy despite the disapproval of such an action by the Irish people; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34498/06]

Photo of Mary UptonMary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 152: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs his views on a recent article (details supplied) that the number of deaths in Iraq has been seriously underestimated, and may be over 600,000; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34499/06]

Photo of Dermot AhernDermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 111, 127 and 152 together.

The Government shares the widespread concern at the extremely difficult situation in Iraq. We and our partners in the EU remain firmly committed to supporting the Iraqi people as they work to restore security and prosperity to their country.

On 21 May, the Iraqi Parliament approved the appointment of the national unity Government presented by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The Cabinet includes democratically-elected representatives of all the main communities in Iraq, including the Sunni community. No-one would underestimate the huge challenges it faces in asserting its authority across the country. However, I believe it is important that we recognise that Iraq now has a fully sovereign and democratic Government and Parliament, for perhaps the first time in its history.

Since 2003, the EU has provided over €700 million in assistance for the reconstruction of Iraq. The June European Council emphasised that this support will continue, in partnership with the new Government. Work is continuing under the auspices of the United Nations on the development of an International Compact for Iraq, which would coordinate assistance in line with the Iraqi Government's priorities.

It is clear that the political and reconstruction efforts of the Government are to a great extent being blocked by the continuing large-scale violence across the country. There is at present no sign that the insurgency and the appalling inter-communal violence are being brought under control.

The Government has no means of assessing the accuracy of the different estimates of the numbers of casualties in Iraq. The NGO Iraq Body Count estimates that between 44,000 and 49,000 civilians have been reported killed since 2003. The recent article in the Lancet, by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the School of Medicine of Al Mustansiriya University in Baghdad, makes deeply disturbing reading. On the basis of a cluster sample survey, the researchers estimate that there may have been as many as 650,000 excess deaths in Iraq as a consequence of the war.

I have followed closely the recent public debate in Britain and in the US on the presence of international troops in Iraq, including the statements by the head of the British Army and by Prime Minister Blair. At the outset of the war in 2003, the Government acknowledged that there was no clear legal consensus on whether there was a mandate for the use of force against Iraq. The Taoiseach moved a Motion, which was adopted by the House on 20 March 2003, which reaffirmed Ireland's commitment to the United Nations as the guarantor of collective global security and the appropriate forum for the resolution of disputes threatening international peace and security. He made clear that Ireland could not participate in the military campaign without an explicit further Security Council mandate. This remains the Government's position on the circumstances of the invasion in 2003.

The reality now is that the international forces serving in Iraq are operating at the explicit request of the Iraqi Government and under UN mandate. The presence of the Multinational Force was authorised by the UN Security Council under Resolution 1511 of October 2003, which urged Member States to contribute assistance under the UN mandate. This mandate was most recently extended until the end of 2006 by Resolution 1637, which was adopted unanimously by the Security Council last November. I believe it would be entirely inappropriate for the Government to advise other States on their contributions to a UN-mandated force. Moreover, it is above all for the democratically-elected Government of Iraq to consider whether it wishes the Multinational Force to continue its operations.

The Government believes that in considering the situation in Iraq, the primary concern of the international community must be the welfare of the people of Iraq. They deserve a better future after decades of brutal dictatorship and war. Concerns relating to the vast reserves of natural resources with which their country has been blessed have too often contributed to instability and divisions in that region of the Middle East. Those resources now need to be harnessed in the interests of all the people of Iraq. The Government and our partners in the EU remain convinced that a secure and peaceful Iraq can only be ensured through the maintenance of its territorial integrity, the development of shared political and other institutions and strong political and economic links with all the countries of the neighbouring region.

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