Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 305: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the progress made on negotiations with the Belorussian authorities to secure continuance of Irish charitable projects working to provide summer holiday opportunities for children from the Chernobyl region in Ireland, and at Christmas time; if continuance of such Irish projects will be governed by a new three year term regulation whereby visiting children from the Chernobyl region who may have stayed with Irish families for three years may not be permitted to return to Ireland again; his views on whether the introduction of such a new regulation will cause heartbreak for many children from the Chernobyl region and for many families from all parts of Ireland particularly since Irish charities and the people of Ireland have been the biggest contributors of support, including international humanitarian aid to the Belorussian community since the Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 26 April 1986; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43928/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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This is an issue of great importance to me and to the host families and organisations who give so generously of their time to the children of Chernobyl. I am determined to bring it to a successful conclusion. Every effort is being made to ensure that the children can continue to visit Ireland for the purposes of rest and recuperation. I spoke on this matter during an Adjournment debate on 18 November last. In addition, I have replied to a number of questions on this important issue, most recently on 11, 12 and 19 November last. Copies of those replies will follow this reply. Late on 14 November, a Belorussian response to a draft agreement between Ireland and Belarus to regulate the children's visits which my Department had sent to Minsk was received through our embassy in Moscow. The text of the revised agreement was examined closely by officials in my Department and in the Office of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. Our response was conveyed to the Belorussian authorities on 26 November. Following an invitation from Belarus, an Irish negotiating team will travel to Minsk on 8 December with a view to negotiating and concluding the agreement and ensuring that restrictions are either removed or, at worst, minimised. I spoke to the Belorussian Foreign Minister on Friday last, 28 November, and expressed the hope that the negotiations could be concluded satisfactorily on 8 December. I also laid stress on the need to allow visits by children over the Christmas holiday period, irrespective of longer term issues. I will continue to give the matter the highest personal priority.

Reply to Question No. 168 of 19 November last:

As the Deputy may be aware, this is an issue of great importance to me personally and I am determined to bring this matter to a successful conclusion. Every effort is being made to ensure that Belorussian children can continue to visit Ireland for the purposes of rest and recuperation. I have replied to a number of questions on this matter, most recently on 11th and 12th of November and I spoke on this matter during an adjournment debate yesterday evening. Late on 14 November, a Belorussian response to a draft Agreement between Ireland and Belarus on the matter which my Department had sent to Minsk was received through our Embassy in Moscow. The text of the revised Agreement is being examined closely by officials in my Department and in the Office of the Minister for Children, and it is intended to forward our response to Minsk shortly with a view to the very early conclusions of negotiations. My Department has also received positive indications at official level that visits by children from Belarus can continue while the negotiating process is ongoing. I hope that this can be confirmed with the Belorussian Government in the coming days. Close contact is being maintained with the charities dealing with Chernobyl children as the situation evolves.

Reply to Questions Nos. 233 and 234 of 12 November last:

I propose to take Questions Nos. 233 and 234 together. I would refer the Deputy to my reply yesterday to Question No. 410 on developments on this issue. As set out there, a second draft of a proposed Bilateral Agreement between Ireland and Belarus, to facilitate visits to Ireland by Chernobyl children, was conveyed to the Belorussian authorities on 26 October. I expect a response from the Belorussian authorities on this very shortly. Once this is received, my Department will move immediately to try to bring this matter to a satisfactory conclusion. The Deputy can be assured of my ongoing personal commitment and engagement in that regard.

Reply to Question No. 410 of 11 November last:

As I mentioned in answer to questions on Wednesday 29 October, once I became aware of possible restrictions on the children's travel, I met with Adi Roche of Chernobyl Children's Project International on 8 September to review the situation, and also asked the Chargé d'Affaires of the Belorussian Embassy in London to visit Dublin later that week to open discussions on an agreement to provide a framework for visits by Chernobyl children. Following intensive discussions at official level, a draft Agreement was forwarded to the Belorussian authorities on 6 October. On 13 October, I discussed progress at a meeting with Belorussian Foreign Minister Martynov and expressed the Government's strong hope that — even if negotiations with the Belorussian Government were not fully concluded — Christmas visits by the Chernobyl children to Ireland should be allowed to go ahead. A Belarus response to the draft agreement, requesting further information, was received by my Department on 16 October. Separately, Ireland's Ambassador to Minsk was notified by the Belorussian authorities on 16 October that a Presidential Decree had been signed on 13 October relating to travel by Belorussian children overseas. Given its potential impact on future visits by children from Chernobyl, and following further consultations with Adi Roche and other Chernobyl NGOs, it was decided to deal with the issues arising through our proposed draft agreement. On 24 October, this approach was conveyed to the Belorussian authorities. A reply has been promised to Ireland's Ambassador on this and is still awaited. Officials remain in constant contact with their Belorussian opposite numbers and an Irish delegation is ready to visit Minsk at short notice with the intention, depending on the Belorussian response, of quickly concluding an agreement which will allow the visits to continue. I am also remaining in very close touch with developments on an issue that is of course of considerable concern to many Irish charities and to individual families, and I am ready to intervene again personally if necessary.