Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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203. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he proposes to raise the ongoing crisis in Libya at the next European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13744/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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I expect that there will be a discussion of the crisis in Libya at the next meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council and I will participate in that discussion. At the March meeting of the Council, High Representative Mogherini was invited to work on possible EU actions to support a government of national unity, in case such a government is agreed at the UN brokered talks.Regrettably, no such agreement has yet been forthcoming since Libya was last discussed at the Council.

However, the UN Special Representative Bernardino Leon has said that ‘very important progress’ has been made in the most recent round of talks held last week.

I hope that the talks soon continue so that the progress made heretofore can be translated into an agreement which can guarantee a better future for the people of Libya.

I call on all parties in Libya to engage constructively to this end, including by observing an immediate ceasefire. This is the only way we can fill the political and security vacuum in Libya and restore the rule of law in the country.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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204. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he proposes to raise the ongoing crisis in Yemen at the next European Union Foreign Affairs Council meeting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13745/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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It is not yet clear whether or not there will be a further discussion of Yemen at the next meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council on 20 April. The Council most recently considered the situation at its meeting on 9 February 2015 when we set out our views on the steps required to achieve a sustainable solution to the developing crisis in the country.Regrettably,the political and security crisis in Yemen has deepened in recent days. Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition which has launched air strikes in response to advances by Houthi forces.On Tuesday of this week, the High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed his shock at the air strike on the Al-Mazraq camp and warned of total collapse in Yemen. This is a terrifying prospect for a country already facing a dire humanitarian situation, not to mention the threat posed by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and by a nascent ISIS movement; the latter claimed responsibility for the brutal attacks at mosques in Sana’a on 20 March.

The EU continues to support the efforts of the UN Secretary General’s Special Adviser on Yemen, Jamal Benomar, whohas been trying in recent weeks to facilitate inclusive negotiations between the parties, but to no avail as yet. It nonetheless remains my view that peace talks are the optimum way to achieve a political consensus which can restore order to Yemen and avoid a protracted and sectarian conflict with implications for the stability of the region.