Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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85. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if her Department will consider a boycott of the 2024 Paris Olympics in the event that Russian and Belarussian athletes are allowed to compete as representatives of their respective countries; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8405/23]

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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On 10 February 2023, I participated in a video call with representatives from 24 other countries from across Europe, North America and Asia, organised by the UK Government, to discuss the issue of Russian and Belarussian athletes in international sport competitions. This call was specifically arranged in response to the International Olympic Committee's statement of 25 January 2023 in which the IOC suggested that the time had come to explore a pathway for athletes from Russia and Belarus to return to international competition.

There was a broad and welcome level of consensus at the recent Ministerial meeting that nothing had changed to warrant a departure from the stance previously indicated in two joint Ministerial statements issued on 8 March and 4 July last year. Ireland signed up to both of those joint statements, which essentially call for the exclusion of Russia and Belarus from international sport whilst the war in Ukraine is ongoing.

Ireland fully subscribes to the position that there should not be any Russian or Belarussian involvement in the Paris Games next year, if there is no change in relation to the war in Ukraine. To that end, on foot of the discussions at the 10 February meeting, I am pleased to inform the Deputy that Ireland has signed up to a third joint statement that clearly sets out our position in relation to the return of Russia and Belarus to international sport. I am arranging to forward a copy of this statement directly to the Deputy.

Given the foregoing circumstances, I do not consider that the issue raised by the Deputy arises. The Paris Games are still some 18 months away and there is no certainty as to what position will prevail in Ukraine or elsewhere as we get closer to the start of the Olympic Games in late July next year.