Lisa Chambers (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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259. To ask the Minister for Defence the number of overseas missions in which the Defence Forces are involved and the number of personnel involved in each mission; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7108/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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As of 08 April 2016, Ireland is contributing 416 Defence Forces personnel to 10 different missions throughout the world, along with deployments to two standby Battlegroup Headquarters and a range of international organisations and National Representations.

The main overseas missions in which Defence Forces personnel are currently deployed are the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) with 196 personnel and the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in Syria with 138 personnel.

Full details of all personnel currently serving overseas are as follows:

Members of the Permanent Defence Force Serving Overseas

As of 8th April 2016

1. UN MISSIONS

(i) UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) HQ 9

UNIFIL51^stInfantry Group183

UNIFILSector West HQ 4

(ii) UNTSO (United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation) Israel & Syria 13

(iii) MINURSO(United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara) 3

(iv) MONUSCO(United Nations Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic 4Republic of the Congo)

(v) UNOCI(United Nations Mission in Ivory Coast) 2

(vi) UNDOF (United Nations Disengagement Observer Force) HQ, 8 Golan Heights, Syria UNDOF52^ndInfantry Group 130

TOTAL 356

UN MANDATED MISSIONS

(vii) EUFOR(EU-led Operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina) 7

(viii) EUTM Mali(EU-Led Training Mission) 10

(ix) KFOR(International Security Presence in Kosovo ) HQ 12

TOTAL NUMBER OF PERSONNEL SERVING WITH UN MISSIONS 385

2. ORGANISATION FOR SECURITY AND CO-OPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE)

(i)OSCE Mission to Bosnia & Herzegovina 1

(ii)Staff Officer, High Level Planning Group, Vienna 1

TOTAL NUMBER OF PERSONNEL SERVING WITH OSCE 2

3. EU MILITARY STAFF

Brussels 4

4. EU BATTLE GROUP

German-led Battle Group 2016 - HQ, STRASBOURG 10

UK-led Battle Group 2016, UK 5

5. MILITARY REPRESENTATIVES/ADVISERS/STAFF

(i)Military Adviser, Permanent Mission to UN, New York 1

(ii)Military Adviser, Irish Delegation to OSCE, Vienna 1

(iii)Military Representative to EU (Brussels) 4

(iv)Liaison Officer of Ireland, NATO/PfP (Brussels) 2

(v)EU OHQ Operation Althea, Mons, Belgium 1

vi)Irish Liaison Officer to SHAPE & Military Co-Op Division, Mons, Belgium 1

TOTAL NUMBER OF DEFENCE FORCES PERSONNEL SERVING OVERSEAS 416