Written Answers. - Parliamentary Debates - Houses of the Oireachtas

Questions— 14 February 2012. Written Answers
recently at his meeting with Prime Minister Cameron in London on 12 January. The Government
will continue to pursue the issue at both ministerial and official level and remains committed
to bringing about a measure of closure to those who have suffered as a result of the Dublin-
Monaghan bombings.
Nuclear Proliferation
115. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and
Trade if he will support the application of economic sanctions to Israel in order to persuade it
to give up its nuclear weapons and bring about a nuclear weapons free zone in the Middle
East. [7610/12]
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Deputy Eamon Gilmore): Israel has
never officially declared itself to possess nuclear weapons. It is one of just three states not
party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which is acknowledged as a cornerstone of the
international non-proliferation regime and the essential foundation for the pursuit of nuclear
disarmament. In both national and EU statements, and through our participation in the New
Agenda Coalition, Ireland has repeatedly called on all three states not party to the NPT to
accede to the Treaty as non-nuclear weapons states and to conclude a full scope safeguards
agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Ireland regards the establishment
of a Middle East Zone free of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems
as a particularly important objective. I am very pleased that at the 2010 NPT Review Conference,
Ireland brokered agreement on a text which emphasised the importance of establishing
such a zone and which set out a number of practical steps towards achieving this, including the
convening of a conference in 2012. We are hopeful that all countries in the region, including
Israel and Iran, will participate in the Conference and in the process going forward.
Ireland is rightly regarded as having a long and very close association with the Nuclear Non-
Proliferation Treaty and as being a very active proponent of complete nuclear disarmament.
The Deputy can be assured that full implementation of the NPT remains a key foreign policy
objective for the Government as we enter the 2015 NPT review cycle, which begins in Vienna
in late April.
I am repeatedly urged to consider sanctions against Israel for various reasons. I have made
clear that, like all previous Irish Governments, the Government does not support such sanctions,
and further that there would be no possibility whatever of achieving an EU consensus in
favour of such sanctions.
116. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and
Trade if he shares the view of the US director of national intelligence, as the director reported
to the US Congress on 31 January, that Iran has not got an active nuclear weapons programme.
[7611/12]
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Deputy Eamon Gilmore): The latest
report of the International Atomic Energy Agency on Iran, issued on 8 November, concluded
that there are strong grounds for serious concerns regarding possible military dimensions to
Iran’s nuclear programme and concluded that information available indicated that Iran had
carried out activities relevant to the development of a nuclear explosive device. The report is
based on information drawn from a wide variety of sources and deemed by the IAEA to be
“consistent in terms of technical content, individuals and organizations involved, and time
frames”. The IAEA is, of course, the internationally recognised watchdog on this issue, with
unrivalled technical expertise and a record of absolute impartiality and independence. The
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