Government pledges additional funding for UN in Iraq

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Dermot Ahern T.D. and the Minister of State for Irish Aid, Mr. Conor Lenihan T.D. today announced additional funding of €100,000 to support the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq. 

The contribution is being made immediately in response to an urgent appeal from the UN.  It brings to €600,000 the total amount provided by the Government for the UN Trust Fund established in 2004 to provide UN security for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq.  The UN has expressed its deep appreciation for this commitment to the Trust Fund, which is essential to the effective operation of the UN Mission.  Today’s announcement is in addition to the €3 million in emergency humanitarian funding pledged by the Government in January in response to the growing Iraqi refugee crisis.

Minister Ahern stated today that “security and stability in Iraq can only be assured through the development of shared democratic institutions, the unity of the country, and the cooperation of all regional neighbours.  Last weekend’s regional meeting in Baghdad was a positive development, which will have to be built on.  The UN Mission in Iraq has a vital role to play in this process, and it must receive all the support necessary from the international community”.

Minister Lenihan reaffirmed the Government’s continuing commitment to respond to the emergency humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people.  He stated that “the €3 million which we pledged in January, on top of €7.9 million already provided for humanitarian relief, is being targeted at agencies working with the growing numbers of families who have been forced by the violence to flee their homes.  We are determined to ensure that help is delivered to those most in need in Iraq and neighbouring countries as urgently as possible”.