Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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415. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the measures being taken to ensure cotton and textiles produced using forced labour in Xinjiang, China do not go on the market here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4399/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Issues relating to the regulation of international trade fall under the EU's common commercial policy and are ultimately a matter of exclusive EU competence. The Tánaiste, as Minister for Enterprise, Trade, and Employment, is responsible for overall trade matters in the national context.

Ireland does not have any unilateral autonomous sanctions regimes, but implements agreed UN or EU sanctions or restrictive measures in relation to third countries, individuals or entities.

As regards the situation in Xinjiang, Ireland, along with our EU partners, remains deeply concerned about the treatment of Uighurs and other ethnic minorities there, including in relation to reports of forced labour.

Both Ireland and the EU have been active in raising our concerns in relation to this matter. Ireland has signed up to a number of Joint Statements at the UN Third Committee and has also raised the matter in our national statement at the UN Human Rights Council. These statements, among other things, call on China to allow unrestricted access to the region for independent observers, including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and call on China to uphold its international obligations and respect human rights in Xinjiang.

In addition to this, the EU has raised the deterioration of the human rights situation in China, including the treatment of minorities in Xinjiang, with Chinese authorities directly on a number of occasions, most recently at the EU-China Leader's Meeting and EU-China Summit.

The protection and promotion of human rights is a core pillar of Ireland's foreign policy, and Ireland will continue to monitor and assess the situation and, along with our EU partners, engage with Chinese authorities bilaterally and in multilateral fora to address our concerns.