Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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40. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he will report on the European Union Foreign Affairs Council on 3 April 2016; the steps he intends to take to support Iraqi and Syrian nationals impacted by the conflict to come here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18305/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I attended the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting on 3 April. My EU counterparts and I also met with the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States.

The conflict in Syria is causing untold suffering and displacement of civilians on the ground. I and my EU counterparts made clear that the Syrian regime has the primary responsibility for the protection of the Syrian population, and called upon the regime and its allies, notably Russia, to undertake all efforts to ensure a full cessation of hostilities; the lifting of sieges; and full unhindered sustainable country-wide humanitarian access. Ireland's humanitarian assistance to the victims of the Syria crisis reached €76 million as of March 2017, and we pledged a further €25 million at the recent conference on Syria which was held in Brussels on Wednesday 5 April.

The severe humanitarian situation in Yemen is also of grave concern. My EU colleagues and I reiterated our strong support for the efforts of the UN Secretary General and the UN Special Envoy for Yemen to achieve a resumption of negotiations and called on all parties to urgently agree on a cessation of hostilities to be monitored by the UN as a first step towards the resumption of peace talks under UN leadership. Ireland has provided almost €6 million in humanitarian aid to Yemen since the conflict began and will maintain our support in 2017.

The Council also agreed on the urgent need for a political solution that would unite Libya under the Libyan Peace Agreement.

I continued my extensive engagement with EU counterparts by having bilateral meetings with the Foreign Ministers of Sweden and Austria respectively to discuss ongoing preparations for the upcoming Brexit negotiations and Ireland’s priority issues, namely the economy, Northern Ireland, the Common Travel Area and our vision for the future of the EU.

The question of support for Iraqi and Syrian nationals impacted by the conflict to come to Ireland is a matter for the Department of Justice and Equality.