IRELAND'S VIEW OF UNSC RESOLUTION ON SOMALI PIRACY

C O N F I D E N T I A L DUBLIN 000263 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/12/2018 TAGS: KCRM PREL PHUM PHSA EWWT UNSC EI SUBJECT: IRELAND'S VIEW OF UNSC RESOLUTION ON SOMALI PIRACY REF: STATE 47531 Classified By: Pol/Econ Section Chief Ted Pierce; Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D). ¶1. (C) POLOFF delivered reftel demarche on May 8, 2008 to Pat Kelly ,Acting Director, Africa Division, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Kelly stated that Ireland was concerned about piracy off the coast of Somalia, and that the Irish Government agreed in principle that international coordination on this issue should be improved. He said that the draft UNSC resolution has been referred to the DFA legal section for an opinion. Kelly noted that very little Irish shipping is threatened by Somali piracy and indicated that Ireland did not possess naval forces that could contribute to enforcement of the UNSCR, should it be passed. In a moment of musing, Kelly wondered how much of a threat the situation really was to international peace and security and questioned the wisdom of "hot pursuit" into Somali territory. ¶2. (C) Comment: Ireland is likely to support international consensus in the United Nations on how to deal with piracy off the Somali coast, particularly if the bulk of EU Member States are in agreement. At the same time, the Irish are likely to raise concerns about the humanitarian crisis in Somalia. FOLEY