Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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192. To ask the Minister for Defence the Minister or Minister of State that represented Ireland at the Ministerial Council meetings of the European Union during the Irish Presidency of the Council to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26210/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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During each Presidency of the Council of the European Union, one formal and one informal meeting of Defence Ministers is held.There is no separate Defence Ministers' Council within the EU Council of Ministers. However, Defence Ministers meet as the 'Foreign Affairs Council in Defence Ministers' format'. These Council meetings are held in Brussels or Luxembourg at the invitation of the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Baroness Catherine Ashton. I attended the formal Foreign Affairs Council in Defence Ministers' format in Luxembourg on Sunday 22 and Monday 23 April 2013. Catherine Ashton chaired the meeting. The meeting commenced with a working dinner on Sunday evening which discussed the current situation in Mali and the wider Sahel region. Discussions on Monday 23 April 2013 were dominated by preparations for the European Council debate on security and defence in December 2013. The day began with a meeting of the European Defence Agency (EDA) Steering Board in Ministers of Defence format which discussed work on EDA projects to enhance the development of defence capabilities and strengthen Europe's Defence industry. Later we discussed the work of the European Commission's Defence Industry Task Force which is responsible for coordinating Defence issues within the Commission. The meeting also discussed increasing the effectiveness, visibility and impact of Common Security and Defence Policy and focused, in particular, on the usability and flexibility of Battlegroups.

I also hosted and chaired, on behalf of Baroness Ashton, the informal meeting of Ministers of Defence in Dublin Castle on Tuesday 12 and Wednesday 13 February 2013. Discussions during the meeting covered a range of issues including the upcoming European Council debate on Defence, Mali, the Horn of Africa and Partnerships between the EU and the United Nations. Mr Herve Ladsous, the United Nations Under-Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations attended the meeting of EU Defence Ministers for the first time. The discussion on partnerships afforded Ministers the opportunity to discuss how to foster more effective co-operation and build partnerships in order to enhance the effectiveness of UN Peacekeeping operations. These meetings of Defence Ministers are important in enabling Member States shape the evolution of the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy, both strategically and operationally, and to work together on issues of mutual concern.