Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Question 201: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs his views on upgrading EU-Israeli relations; if he will oppose Israel's accession application to membership of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17382/10]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland looks forward to the progressive deepening and strengthening of the EU's relations with Israel, as with all of our Mediterranean partners. We agreed with the EU's decision in 2008 to enhance relations with Israel, but acted with other Member States to ensure that the decision of the External Relations Council included a clear linkage to the EU's political concerns in the region, especially progress on the peace process. Following the Gaza conflict, Ireland and other Member States argued that for the EU to proceed at this time with the proposed 'upgrade' would be open to misinterpretation both in the wider Middle East region and in Israel itself. In June 2009 the Council agreed that the time was not right to proceed with the 'upgrade'. This remains the position for now. In my view, nothing has happened to alter that decision.

Concerning the second part of the Deputy's question, I draw the Deputy's attention to a reply to a written Parliamentary Question (16000/10), which I provided on Wednesday, 21 April 2010 and to confirm that the situation concerning this matter has not changed in the intervening week. The text of my reply to Parliamentary Question 16000/10 is attached below, for ease of reference:

"The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has periodically enlarged its membership since its foundation with 20 Members, including Ireland, in 1961. It currently has 30 members, with the Slovak Republic the most recent to accede, in 2000. In 2007, the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting decided, by consensus, to open accession discussions with Chile, Estonia, Israel, the Russian Federation and Slovenia.

The OECD accession process involves submission of an initial memorandum (which sets out the country's position on more than 200 OECD legal instruments), technical accession reviews by 22 OECD committees assessing the country's compliance with the OECD acquis (obligations include liberalisation commitments under the OECD investment instruments, adoption of national laws which comply with the requirements of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention as well as commitments related to environmental policy), and a final decision by the Council of the OECD to invite the candidate country to accede. An invitation to accede to the OECD is based upon the applicant country's compliance with the Organisation's acquis and does not relate to or imply approval for other actions or policies of that State.

An accession agreement with Chile was signed on 11 January of this year and it will accede formally to the Organisation once ratification procedures are completed. It is expected that Slovenia, Estonia and Israel will complete their accession procedures this year. The accession process for Russia is moving at a slower pace and there is no predicted date for completion. In the case of Israel, on the basis of formal opinions and all other relevant technical information, the Secretary-General of the OECD has recommended to the OECD Council that Israel be invited to accede to the Organisation. It is expected that the OECD Council will address this matter over the period ahead.

During the Israeli accession negotiations, the EU has adopted a cohesive approach and plans to issue a common statement at the OECD Council when a decision to formally invite Israel to become a member is taken in the coming weeks. It is anticipated that the EU will note that Israel has taken a number of important steps through the adoption of new legislation, regulations and policy directions in many areas, including anti-corruption, the environment, competition and intellectual property rights. It is expected that the EU statement will also state that Israel is expected to demonstrate readiness for compliance with the recommendations made by OECD bodies in the accession process and to pursue reforms, especially in areas where implementation periods were granted or where commitments have been undertaken.

Taking all requirements of the accession process into consideration it is expected that Ireland will join with the other 29 members of the OECD to formally invite Israel to become a member. We will work with partners in ensuring that Israel fully complies with all the obligations arising from OECD membership."