Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 129: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the most recent report by the EU in relation to the situation in Somalia. [3701/08]

Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)
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Question 147: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs his views on the most recent United Nations report on the deteriorating conditions in Somalia; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3702/08]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 129 and 147 together.

I remain very concerned at the situation in Somalia. The country has been without an effective government since 1991, and despite an initial period of stability after Ethiopian troops and Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces defeated the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) in December 2006, the situation has worsened in recent months. The first troops from an African Union-mandated peace support force (AMISOM) were deployed to Mogadishu in March 2007 but, as it stands, and with less than a quarter of the planned 8,000 troops on the ground, AMISOM has not been able to bring any important measure of stability.

The position has deteriorated since October 2007, when there was an upsurge in violence in Mogadishu triggered by the killings of several Ethiopian soldiers. Since then, there has been intense fighting in Mogadishu between Ethiopian and TFG forces on the one hand, and clan militias and Islamists on the other hand. The appointment of a new Prime Minister, Nur Haasan Hussein, in November 2007 has however brought some hope of a fresh political approach.

The fighting in Mogadishu since October has prompted hundreds of thousands to flee the capital, adding to the humanitarian crisis, particularly in and around Mogadishu. In total, approximately one million people have been displaced since the start of 2007, while up to one and a half million need humanitarian aid. The precarious environment in which humanitarian personnel in Somalia operate has been highlighted by the recent killing of three humanitarian workers there. I am also deeply concerned by reports of an Irish national being held hostage, along with a number of others, on a ship hijacked earlier this week by pirates off the Somali coast. Access for humanitarian personnel and supplies has also suffered as established supply routes through Kenya have been affected by the ongoing crisis in that country.

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary General (UNSRSG), Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, briefed the UN Security Council in December 2007 on his contacts with President Yusuf and Prime Minister Hussein in an effort to resolve the ongoing crisis by peaceful means. The UN Secretary General has made it clear to the Security Council that due to the prevailing political and security situation, the deployment of a UN peacekeeping force to Somalia is not a realistic option for the time being.

My EU colleagues and I discussed the situation in Somalia at the General Affairs and External Affairs Council in December 2007. We agreed that a political solution will be the key to ending the suffering of the Somali people. Ireland has regularly highlighted the priority which must be given to ensuring unobstructed humanitarian access and has urged that the EU use its influence in this regard. Since 2006, Irish Aid has provided over €14 million in humanitarian assistance to the Somali people, and we stand ready to provide further assistance, as required.