Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2026-06-11
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Peter Burke (FG), Longford-Westmeath

I will. I said that we are carrying out an investigation to get the evidence. As a Minister, I cannot make a decision without impartial evidence before me. We are working with the European Commission, which is the competent authority in this regard, to essentially recommend sanctions to the Department of enterprise and the Government. We are the enforcement authority. We carry out the execution of the sanction but the policy piece is the remit of the Commission, which we feed into. We will be working to ascertain the truth here. We are taking a pan-European approach with other European authorities, which is critical.
I will be very clear that the Irish Government would not tolerate any exports that were feeding the Russian military complex. We have supported Ukraine. We have a very strong track record of doing that. I have put an independent process in place to ensure that we get to the bottom of the facts of exactly where this alumina is ending up. We have to achieve that through the investigation.
In a European context, alumina is not a dual-use product and has not been designated as such. There are many products like that across the economy. We have to be clear. We must get the evidence and then take action if it is proven that the supply chain is not concealed and that it is going to aid and assist the Russian military complex.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-06-11/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:05+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-11