Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 126: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs when he last met with the South African Ambassador. [1863/09]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I last met formally with the Ambassador of South Africa to Ireland in July 2008. Officials in my Department have, of course, discussed issues with Ambassador Jana regularly since then, and ensured that she is fully aware of my thinking and that of the Government on all relevant issues. Likewise, our Ambassador and his colleagues in our Embassy of Ireland to South Africa have ongoing contact with the South African Authorities.

South Africa continues to be a source of stability in the southern African region, and an important partner for both Ireland and the EU. There is a wide range of issues of mutual interest, ranging from trade and development, to regional issues such as the ongoing crises in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in South Africa's neighbour, Zimbabwe. Our South African partners are very well aware of Ireland's deep concerns about the situation in Zimbabwe, and our commitment to an outcome which respects the democratic will of the Zimbabwean people.