Patrick Costello (Dublin South Central, Green Party)
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60.To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if Ireland is compliant with the European Council Common Position 2008/944/CFSP of 8 December 2008 in relation to checks on US military at Shannon Airport on goods destined for Israel; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[35318/24]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is the National Competent Authority with responsibility for Export Controls, including Controls on defence-related exports and exports of Dual-Use goods.

All applications for exports of controlled goods are assessed on a case-by-case basis giving due consideration to the eight criteria under the Council Common Position 2008/944/CFSP defining common rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment.

Applications are subject to a rigorous licence application process which centres on a careful assessment of the proposed end-user and the end-use. Furthermore, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment consults with the Department of Foreign Affairs in respect of the majority of military licence types and all dual-use export licence applications.

Under the terms of the Air Navigation (Foreign Military Aircraft) Order, 1952, all foreign military aircraft wishing to overfly, or land in, the State require diplomatic clearance from the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Diplomatic clearance is subject to strict conditions, including that the aircraft is unarmed; that it carries no arms, ammunition or explosives; that it does not engage in intelligence gathering; and that the flight in question does not form part of a military exercise or operation.

Foreign military aircraft which are given permission to land in Ireland are not subject to inspection in this regard. Sovereign immunity, a long-standing principle of customary international law, means that a state may not exercise its jurisdiction in respect to another state or its property, including state and military aircraft. This principle applies automatically to foreign State or military aircraft in the same way that it applies to Irish State or military aircraft abroad.

Under the Air Navigation (Carriage of Munitions of War, Weapons and Dangerous Goods) Orders 1973 and 1989, it is expressly prohibited for civil aircraft to carry munitions of war in Irish sovereign territory, without being granted an exemption to do so from the Minister for Transport.