Minister Andrews praises EU role in peace process

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr David Andrews, T.D., told the European Parliament in Brussels today that the conflict in Northern Ireland had been "an affront to the values of our shared European civilization." However, the European example has "shown that no society is condemned by some iron law of history to pace the treadmill of its past"

Mr Andrews, who was taking part in a debate at the parliament on the Good Friday Agreement, spoke of the inspiration drawn by the Government in its approach to peace process from "the European ideal and the concrete achievements of the Union". He expressed deep appreciation for "the crucial role of the Union has played in preparing the ground for the Agreement".

Mr Andrews commented that Europe had demonstrated "how age-old rivalries and bloody conflicts can be transcended through new partnership structures". Experience within the Union has, in many areas, shown "a true commonality of interest between the two parts of Ireland" while "the EU's structures have themselves been a guide to us in the negotiation of arrangements for cooperation and joint action within Ireland, North and South".

Minister Andrews praised the EU's economic support through, for example, the Peace and Reconciliation Programme, and its contributions to the International Fund for Ireland, which had been vital "in making the peace process a tangible reality for many individuals and communities, both in Northern Ireland and in the border counties of the South".

Mr Andrews said that "the Agreement does not pretend to be a final and definitive settlement. But it creates institutions within which new relationships of trust can be developed, and offers guarantees, both individual and collective, of the fundamental rights and interests of all. The Agreement is complex. It contains within it many elements which must in their practical operation be synchronised and meshed together. The transition to the working of the structures and policies in the Agreement will be a challenging and continuing process. In that sense, the Agreement is an opportunity as much as an achievement".

Welcoming the Monday's statement from the General Affairs Council in support of the Agreement, Mr Andrews said that "the continuing support of the European Union will be crucial if we are to meet the new challenges presented by the Agreement".

Looking forward to the May referendums, North and South, Mr Andrews hoped that the people, when they come to vote, would have in their minds "the profound example - the triumph in fact - offered by Europe's transformation of itself. I am confident that the people will, together and concurrently, endorse the Agreement, and allow its immense potential to be realised".Top