Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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70. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he contributed at the January 2018 EU Council meeting; and the meetings he attended before or after the EU Council meeting. [3444/18]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I attended the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting on Monday 22 January. At this meeting EU Foreign Ministers discussed the post-Cotonou framework for relations between the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries from 2020; developments in Libya; and the Middle East Peace Process. Ministers also held an informal lunch meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. I participated actively in these discussions. On post-Cotonou, I noted that Ireland is a strong supporter of the partnership with the African, Caribbean and Pacific group of countries, and that we look forward to contributing to the discussions on the negotiating mandate. The discussion on Libya was a valuable opportunity to receive an update from the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative Ghassan Salamé, who briefed Ministers on developments there. At the discussion on the Middle East Peace Process I called on the EU to take an active and positive role. In the margins of the Council I met bilaterally with the Dutch Foreign Minister Mr. Halbe Zijlstra to discuss the Middle East Peace Process.