Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 390: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the extent to which the International community plans to make further positive intervention in the Sudan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36420/10]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The north-south peace process in Sudan is at a critical juncture as the country prepares for a referendum on self-determination for the South and a separate referendum on the status of the district of Abyei in January 2011. The referenda are envisaged by the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) between the National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudanese People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), which brought an end to the north-south conflict in Sudan. Ireland and the EU believe that full implementation of the CPA is fundamental to securing peace and stability in Sudan as a whole and in the wider region. This is a position shared by a wide range of countries, including the United States and the Member States of the African Union.

In view of the importance attached to a peaceful and orderly referendum process in Sudan, the international community is paying close attention to developments in the country. On 24 September, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon hosted a high level meeting in New York on Sudan at which representatives of the Government of Sudan and the Government of South Sudan were joined by twelve Heads of State and Government, including US President Obama, as well as representatives of the EU, African Union and other interested parties in reaffirming the importance of full implementation of the CPA. Last week the members of the UN Security Council visited Sudan to review preparations for the referendum and also to assess the situation in Darfur. The Intergovernmental Authority on Development, which groups six East-African states including Sudan, will hold a conference on Sudan next month.

The EU Special Representative to Sudan, Rosalind Marsden, is playing an active role in encouraging both sides to fulfil their obligations under the CPA to put in place the necessary arrangements and to create the conditions to allow a free and fair referendum next January which produces a credible result that is accepted by all. The EU will deploy an Election Observation Mission to Sudan, to cover both the voter registration process and the referendum and preparations for this mission have already begun. Nationally, Ireland attaches considerable importance to a peaceful and orderly referendum process. This was one of the pressing issues I highlighted in my address to the UN General Assembly last month and personnel from our Embassy have also recently visited South Sudan to review the situation on the ground.

The continuing conflict in Darfur and the associated tensions with the international community over the ICC arrest warrant against President Bashir also impinge on the north south peace process. The CPA calls for a settlement to the conflict in Darfur with the Doha peace process the focal point for international efforts to bring an end to the conflict there. The negotiations are being led by the joint AU-UN chief mediator, Djibril Bassolé, whose work Ireland fully supports. While the Doha process suffered a serious setback in May when the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), one of Darfur's biggest rebel groups, withdrew from the negotiations, following efforts by AU-UN chief mediator Bassolé, they have agreed to return to the negotiating table.

The aim of mediation efforts remains a comprehensive resolution to the conflict in Darfur which brings peace, security and development to the people of this region, and Ireland, with its EU partners, will continue to support the ongoing efforts of the AU-UN chief mediator to achieve progress in the Doha talks. I also welcome the commitment of other regional and international stakeholders to securing peace in Darfur. At the same time, I believe that it is essential that a unified and coherent international approach is taken. This approach will continue to inform EU policy on Darfur. Ireland will also continue through its humanitarian aid programme in the region, which totalled almost €3.5 million since 2008, to provide assistance to the large numbers of people displaced by the conflict.

Ireland, the EU and the broader international community are strongly committed to support the development of a democratic, peaceful and prosperous Sudan and believe that only through an agreed approach which is inclusive of all Sudanese, can these objectives be met. Taking into account the interdependent and complex nature of the political challenges facing Sudan, the Union will remain engaged during this pivotal period for Sudan.