EU chief says it is ‘important to get facts straight’ on Aughinish Alumina

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, Press Association

It is “important to get the facts straight” on the Limerick-based plant Aughinish Alumina, the EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has said.

She was speaking after discussing the alumina refinery with Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee in Iveagh House in Dublin.

Kallas said that alumina had not been included in sanctions against Russia to date, but said they are constantly asking “what more can we do”.

The Department of Enterprise and Trade is carrying out an investigation into reports that products from the refinery, which has a Russian parent company, are being used to supply Russian arms manufacturers.

The Government was warned by the company last month of potential job losses in Ireland and of a restricted supply of alumina across Europe if it fell under Russian sanctions.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said last week that the Irish government had “engaged” with the European Union in relation to sanctions against the plant, and said he believed that sanctioning it “would be harming Europe much more than Russia”.

Kallas said it trusts the Irish government to carry out the investigation into the Limerick plant.

“The investigations are ongoing, and for us it’s important that we get the facts straight,” she said.

“Now we are trusting the Irish government to do these investigations.”

She said alumina has not been included in sanction packages to date but that it was “always a question, what more can we do?”

“I think this case shows that we should also look into this, that the material that Russia needs to continue with its war, whether it’s different types of metals, whether it’s the oil refinery products that they need, we need to look, and we have to be creative in coming up with the next sanctions, because our aim is that this war will end, and it will also end if the aggressor runs out of either money or material to continue.”

She added: “Yes, there are member states (such as Estonia) who have been pushing, but eventually all the member states need to agree, and so far it hasn’t been in the sanctions yet.”

McEntee said: “I’ve made it very clear that our support remains firmly with Ukraine, and that once the investigation that is under way concludes, that information will be provided to the Commission, and we will work directly with them.

“We will ensure that any decisions that need to be taken to put pressure on Russia that they will have the full support of Ireland.”