Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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31. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the on-going hostilities in Ukraine; if a full assessment has been made as to the impact of Russian sanctions on Ireland; if he will provide an update on actions taken by the EU to ease the crisis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44995/14]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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I continue to closely monitor developments in Ukraine and am deeply concerned by the significant deterioration in the security situation in the east of the country. The sharp escalation of hostilities in recent weeks and credible reports of the large movement of tanks, artillery and troops from across the Russian border into rebel held areas seriously threaten progress towards peace.

At the Foreign Affairs Council on 18 November, I participated in a comprehensive discussion on the situation in Ukraine and the way forward. Ministers reiterated the urgent need for all sides to swiftly and fully implement the Minsk agreements and, once again, underlined the responsibility of the Russian Federation in this regard. We called for an immediate halt to the continuous violations of the ceasefire, a withdrawal of all foreign forces and military equipment from Ukraine, as well as a securing of the border between Ukraine and Russia with permanent monitoring by the OSCE. It is clear that a lasting ceasefire remains central to the success of current efforts to reach a sustainable political solution, based on respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

On 7 August the Russian Federation announced a wide ranging ban on food imports from the EU in response to restrictive measures adopted against the Russian Federation the previous month. The ban has had negative repercussions on our agri-food sector, with exports of diary and seafood most affected. The impact on Ireland of the Russian restrictions is being closely monitored by the Department of Agriculture and Food but it is clearly a setback to our plans for the Russian market.

Minister Coveney is fully aware of the need to seek out alternative markets for Irish agri-food exports and has already had success in this regard with the opening of the Philippines to Irish beef, pigmeat and sheepmeat and Vietnam to Irish pigmeat. Earlier this month, he undertook a successful agri-food trade mission to China, which is a crucially important growth market for Irish food and drinks with vast import potential across a range of agriculture sectors. In the course of the week long mission a number of companies accompanying the Minister made substantive progress in advancing their commercial relationships in China.

The European Commission has also introduced a range of supports for EU farmers, growers and producers to mitigate the impact of the Russian ban. The Department of Agriculture and Food is working closely with the Irish dairy industry to ensure that it is well placed to avail of the supports available.

My Department will continue to liaise with the Department of Agriculture and Food, including in the context of the Export Trade Council, in carefully monitoring the impact on Ireland of the Russian sanctions and taking necessary action as required.