Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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189. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he supports a right of return for displaced Palestinian communities whose families were displaced from what is now considered to be Israel in line with the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the 1948 Fourth Geneva Convention. [31646/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Ireland remains convinced that the implementation of the two-State solution is the only way to establish lasting peace and security for both Israel and Palestine, and the wider region.

As the Deputy may recall, the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, commonly known as the Oslo Accords, signed by Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in 1993 deferred certain issues, including the right of return, to subsequent permanent status negotiations.

A shared priority in this regard with both our European and regional partners at this time is the forthcoming UN High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the two-State Solution. This will take place in New York in June of this year and will be co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia.

This Conference will provide an important opportunity to advance discussions on concrete initiatives towards implementing the two-State solution such as implementation of the Arab Recovery and Reconstruction Plan for Gaza. Ireland will co-chair a Working Group, alongside Türkiye, focused on preserving the two-State solution. We hope that this conference will be a decisive moment for the international community.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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190. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he agrees with the comments of French Minister Jean-Noël Barrot (details supplied) wherein he expressed that France will support a Palestinian state on the condition that it does not have the key characteristics of a sovereign state, namely that it would be demilitarised and a different, occupying power would be responsible for security, or whether the Tánaiste supports a fully sovereign Palestinian state responsible for its own security and which can elect its own leadership without the involuntary input of other states. [31647/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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On 28 May, Ireland marked one year since we announced, alongside Spain and Norway, that we would recognise the State of Palestine. We took that decision as an expression of our support for the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, self-governance, statehood territorial integrity and security.

Ireland’s recognition of the State of Palestine, alongside a number of European partners, and with the endorsement of key Arab States, was carefully calibrated to build momentum behind efforts to implement the two-State solution. We took the decision as an expression of hope, and in the spirit of peace. A year on, we now see the question of recognition at the centre of the international debate.

A shared priority with both our European and regional partners at this time is the forthcoming UN High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the two-State Solution. This will take place in New York in June of this year and will be co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia.

This Conference will provide an important opportunity to advance discussions on concrete initiatives towards implementing the two-State solution such as implementation of the Arab Recovery and Reconstruction Plan for Gaza. Ireland will co-chair a Working Group, alongside Türkiye, focused on preserving the two-State solution. We hope that this conference will be a decisive moment for the international community.