Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Defence if he will report on the Defence Forces’ mission in Syria; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54776/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Six (6) members of the Permanent Defence Force are deployed in Syria as part of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO). The Defence Forces have participated in UNTSO since 1958. Defence Forces personnel serving with this mission are based in Syria, Israel and Lebanon. The main functions of UNTSO are to maintain regional dialogue, monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements and to assist UN peacekeeping operations in Lebanon and Syria. The six UNTSO Defence Forces personnel based in Syria are part of Observer Group Golan responsible for the Syrian side of the Golan Heights. One Irish officer is the Chief of Observer Group Golan and has responsibility for the conduct of operations by UN Military Observers within Israeli Occupied Golan and Syria. The remaining five (5) Defence Forces personnel are deployed as UN Military Observers and conduct their duties in support of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights. Their duties include manning Observation Posts, conducting fortnightly inspections of the deployment of Syrian Arab Armed Forces and conducting patrols within the Area of Limitation in order to ensure that no activities occur which could lead to the breach of the ceasefire between Israel and Syria.

As the security situation in Syria remains highly volatile, Defence Forces personnel normally based in Damascus were relocated by UNTSO to offices and accommodation at UNDOF Headquarters in the Golan Heights, on 15 October 2012, as a temporary force protection measure. The Irish personnel continue to fulfill their roles from this temporary location. It is intended that they will return to offices and accommodation in Damascus should there be an improvement in the security situation.

Six members of the Permanent Defence Force who had been deployed as unarmed military observers to the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) were withdrawn in August 2012 when the mission’s mandate came to an end.

Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Defence the date on which he proposes to withdraw the seven members of the Defence Forces serving in Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54774/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The Defence Forces are primarily deployed on overseas missions in support of international peace and security under UN mandates. On 20 December 2001, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1386 under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, authorising the establishment of an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, and there are fourteen UN Security Council Resolutions relating to ISAF, most recently UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2069 (2012), adopted on 9 October 2012. is latest UN Security Council Resolution extended ISAF’s mandate for a further year until October 2013. Ireland has participated in the NATO–led UN mandated mission since 5 July 2002, following the Government Decision of 2 July 2002, authorising the provision of seven (7) members of the Permanent Defence Force for service with the force. The continued participation by seven (7) members of the Permanent Defence Force in ISAF is reviewed annually by the Government. The most recent decision by the Government was on 26 June 2012, when it agreed to continue to provide seven members of the Permanent Defence Force for service with ISAF for a further period from July 2012, subject to ongoing review by the Minister for Defence. Planning for the drawdown of ISAF generally is currently ongoing and the withdrawal of the Defence Forces personnel from the mission will be coordinated within the context of the overall ISAF drawdown plan.