Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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240. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the engagements he has had with counterparts in Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Iceland, Luxembourg, or Malta with regard to joining or supporting the Hague Group of countries that came together earlier this year to support the principles of the Charter of United Nations, International Human Rights norms, humanitarian law, and the role of international courts. [26767/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Both I and my officials interact with a wide variety of international partners on the Middle East which remains a major priority for this Government.

Ireland’s engagement is guided by our longstanding and principled position, notably respect for international law, respect for the equal right to self-determination, peace, security and dignity for Israelis and Palestinians alike, and unwavering support for the two-State solution. While Ireland is not a member of the group referred to by the Deputy, this Government is committed to working with partners around the world in service of these objectives.

Ireland has been centrally involved in the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution which was founded at UN High Level Week last year and has met several times since then. It most recently met this month in Morocco.

Across all its bilateral and multilateral engagement, Ireland has consistently underlined the need for all parties to comply with international law, including international humanitarian law.

Ireland is a steadfast supporter of the International Criminal Court, as well as the principles and values enshrined in the Rome Statute. It is vital that the Court be allowed to carry out its important work in an independent and impartial manner. Ireland calls on all States to refrain from imposing measures that seek to influence the investigation of the Court with regards to Palestine, or any other situation.

Ireland has also filed a Declaration of Intervention at the International Court of Justice in South Africa’s case against Israel under the Genocide Convention on 6 January; and in The Gambia’s case against Myanmar on 20 December 2024.

On 28 February of this year, Ireland also filed a detailed written submission with the ICJ in advisory proceedings concerning the obligations of Israel in relation to the UN and other international organisations, as well as states, in the occupied Palestinian territory.

The immediate focus of the international community must be on efforts to ensure an immediate ceasefire, the release of all remaining hostages, and a surge in vital humanitarian aid into and throughout Gaza.