Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 153: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will provide a report on the international donors' conference on Georgia which was held in Brussels recently; the financial support Ireland has offered to Georgia since the summer of 2008; the way these moneys are broken down; the proposed talks between Russia and Georgia scheduled to take place in November 2008 in Geneva; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38381/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The EU- and World Bank-sponsored donor conference for Georgia on 22 October in Brussels proved a highly successful event. A total of 71 delegations attended, many of them led at a high level. Ambassador Marie Cross, Ireland's representative on the Political and Security Committee of the European Union, represented Ireland. A sum of €3.6 billion was pledged to Georgia's ongoing reconstruction and reform efforts, and Ireland indicated it would allocate €2 million in official development assistance to Georgia from 2008 to 2010.

In response to the crisis in Georgia in August, Ireland provided €100,000 to assist the relief efforts of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). A further €150,000 has been allocated to assist UNHCR with the provision of shelter and non-food items to the displaced. Irish Aid has also provided US$20,000 to the International Medical Support Services (IMSS) to assist with providing relief supplies and medical assistance to the displaced. Financial contributions have been made to support the deployment of a member of Ireland's Rapid Response Corps with UNICEF and to support the deployment of 4 Irish civilian monitors as part of the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia.

Under the terms of the 12 August 6-point peace plan, the 8 September agreement, and in order to find a settlement of the current dispute in Georgia, peace talks were held in Geneva on 15 October under the co-chairmanship of the EU, the UN and the OSCE. Although the first session was somewhat restricted owing to disputes between the parties, it was agreed the talks would reconvene on 18 November. I would hope that at this meeting matters of substance can be addressed, including the plight of Internally Displaced Persons, which is becoming more acute as winter approaches. In this regard, I plan to visit Georgia in the near future in order to assess conditions on the ground and for discussions with political leaders there.