Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Defence his plans for the continued development of the common security and defence policy and the comprehensive approach to crisis management that he is prioritising during Ireland's EU presidency. [13252/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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As part of Ireland’s Presidency of the European Council 2013 my colleague, the Minister for Defence, has prioritised a number of areas that he would like to progress during our Presidency. These include the continued development of the Common Security and Defence Policy and the comprehensive approach to crisis management. Regarding the Comprehensive approach to crisis management the priority is to ensure that all tools, e.g., Diplomatic, military political, economic etc., at the disposal of the European Union are utilised to ensure that any crises occurring are managed in a co-ordinated and comprehensive way. An example of this is the work currently being undertaken in the Horn of Africa whereby there are a number of military operations and a number of civilian missions operating side by side. These include, the military operation EUNAVFOR, which deters, prevents and represses acts of piracy and armed robbery and protects vessels of the World Food Programme (WFP), humanitarian aid and African Union Mission on Somalia (AMISOM) shipping and EUCAP Nestor, which is supporting regional maritime capacity building in the Horn of Africa and Western Indian Ocean states.

I am of the view that developing a comprehensive approach to tackling security issues, self-evidently serves a common good. Establishing closer co-ordination between the EU and international institutions and actors primarily dealing with all aspects of internal and external security is essential.

Within the EU there is a broad consensus that the approach to any crisis must be all-encompassing to ensure that countries and/or regions that are unstable, subject to conflict or are fragile receive the required assistance.

To achieve this, I am seeking to ensure that any approach being adopted, like that in Mali, emphasises the full cycle of engagement from prevention to mediation, to crisis management and post-conflict assistance.

As such co-operation with international organisations must always be prioritised and there is a need for the EU to allow such organisations operate within their mandate. This also facilitates one of my other priorities of enhancing co-operation with the UN.