Pat Deering (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

135. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence if Ireland purchases weapons from Israel; and if so, the amount of money spent in the past five years. [2760/18]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The primary focus for the procurement of defensive equipment by the Department of Defence is to maintain the capability of the Irish Defence Forces to fulfil the roles as assigned by Government. This includes undertaking overseas Peace Support Operations, and in this regard to afford the greatest possible force protection to Irish troops whilst on all missions.

The principle of competitive tendering for Government contracts is used by the Department of Defence for the acquisition of defensive equipment for the Defence Forces. Central to those procedures is the requirement to allow fair competition between suppliers through the submission of tenders following advertising of the tender competition on the e-tenders site and on the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU), where appropriate, in line with the EU procurement directives, including the Directive on the procurement of Defensive and Security Equipment.

Such tender competitions are open to any company or country in accordance with the terms of all UN, OSCE and EU arms embargoes or restrictions. There are no such restrictions or embargoes in place on Israeli companies.

I am advised that the Department of Defence has not purchased any weapons from Israel in the last five years. However, other defensive equipment has been acquired from Israeli companies during that timeframe. The expenditure primarily relates to the procurement of Ground Surveillance Radars for the Defence Forces and the upgrade of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles operated by the Defence Forces. A breakdown of expenditure on the purchase of defensive equipment from Israel for the last five years is set out in the table.