Minister Flanagan meets EU Foreign Ministers to discuss the Middle East, Ebola and Ukraine

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charlie Flanagan TD, will today meet EU Foreign Ministers to discuss the Middle East, Ebola and Ukraine.

Speaking ahead of the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, Minister Flanagan said:

“Today we will hear from new EU High Representative, Federica Mogherini, on her recent visit to the Middle East. I welcome this early visit by her as a sign of the continued priority which the EU accords this issue. I believe that the EU must become more actively engaged in the efforts to re-launch the Middle East Peace Process, and in confronting the increasingly serious threats to securing a viable, negotiated two-State solution."

On Ebola the Minister said:

“Ireland continues to work closely with EU partners as well as through the UN system to ensure a coordinated and robust response to the Ebola crisis. This year, Ireland is providing over €17 million to affected countries in West Africa, directly and through NGOs.

“Today we will hear from the EU Ebola Coordinator, Commissioner Stylianides, who will update us on the actions taken by the EU. With the EU and its Member States having together pledged €1 billion in funding, the EU is the prime donor amongst the international community in addressing Ebola”

Ministers will also discuss the situation in Ukraine. Minister Flanagan said:

“Ireland is deeply concerned by the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, in particular reports of increased levels of violence and troop movements in Eastern Ukraine in recent days.

“The situation remains extremely fragile and it is crucial that all sides, including the Russian Federation, fully implement the commitments they have signed up to. No actions should be taken to undermine the objective of the negotiated and peaceful end to this crisis that we all wish to see.”

The meeting will also discuss the deteriorating situation in Libya, and the relationship between the European Union and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This will be the first Foreign Affairs Council to be chaired by the new High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the former Foreign Minister of Italy, Federica Mogherini, who succeeded Cathy Ashton in the role on 1 November 2014.