Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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506. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the recent meetings he has had with European counterparts on the worsening refugee crisis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45464/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Migration crisis has dominated the EU agenda for much of 2015. There have been three special European Council meetings to address Migration while Justice and Home Affairs Ministers have had five special meetings to address the crisis. I and my colleagues in the Foreign Affairs Council have also grappled with the issues at length.

In June, the Foreign Affairs Council launched EUNAVFOR Med, the EU’s naval operation to disrupt the dangerous activities of people smugglers in the Mediterranean, which have tragically resulted in the loss of many lives. As the Deputy will know, the crews of the L.E. Niamh, Eithne and Samuel Beckett have done sterling work in saving more than 8,500 lives.

In September, the Government decided accept up to 4,000 asylum seekers and refugees as part of the European Commission’s comprehensive plan to address the migration crisis.

As part of its efforts to develop a comprehensive strategy, the EU organised two high level conferences. On 8 October, a conference focusing on migration flows into the EU through the Eastern Mediterranean and Western Balkans route took place in Luxembourg attended by both JHA and Foreign Ministers. The Conference issued a Declaration endorsing a five-pronged approach to addressing the migration challenge.

On 11\12 November EU Heads of State and Government met their African counterparts at a migration summit in Valletta. They agreed to establish a Trust Fund to address the root causes of migration in Africa. The €1.8 billion Fund is to be augmented by EU member state contributions. Ireland is contributing €3m.

On November 29th an EU-Turkey summit meeting was held at which the EU agreed to provide a financial package worth €3 billion to help Turkey accommodate the more than two million Syrian refugees residing in the country. As part of the agreement, there is to be a concerted effort by Turkey to cease the flow of irregular migrants. It has long been recognised that the cooperation of Third Countries is essential if the EU is to manage the migration flows. The agreement with Turkey represents an important step in this regard.

On 14 December, in the margins of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, I participated in a working lunch with Turkey’s foreign minister where the Syrian situation was one of the items discussed.

These initiatives demonstrate the determination of the EU to work as hard as possible to see the refugee crisis resolved.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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507. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will report on meetings held and topics discussed during his recent visit to United Arab Emirates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45465/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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I visited the United Arab Emirates on the 7^thand 8^thof December (arriving there late on December 6th).

I held a number of meetings with senior Emirati officials. These were: Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces; Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed AL Nahyan, Minister for Foreign Affairs; Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Minister for Finance; Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister for Culture, Youth, and Social Development; and Sultan Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy.

A number of these officials have visited Ireland in recent years and others have supported efforts to build Ireland’s profile in the UAE and to develop the relationship between the two countries. For example, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has visited Ireland twice as Foreign Minister and Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan was Patron of the first Global GAA Games, which was held in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.

I also met with the Irish Business Council in Abu Dhabi and the Dubai Irish Business Network.

Ireland’s relationship with the UAE has deepened in recent years, including through regular high level visits and the opening of resident embassies in both directions. Our trade now stands at more than €1 billion and there are some 8,000 Irish citizens living in the UAE. Given the strength and breadth of the relations between the two countries, my discussions with local interlocutors covered a very wide range of topics.

While the detail of these discussions is confidential, I can confirm that the issues covered included: the crisis in Syria and its regional implications; the challenge of Islamist extremism in the region and in Europe; the conflict in Yemen; the nuclear deal with Iran and human rights.

Our discussions also covered the economic relationship between Ireland and the UAE and how to further develop that relationship, including in the areas of health and education services, SME development, aviation and financial services.