asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if any request has been made to his Department seeking the appointment of an honorary consul to Nicaragua; and his disposition to any such proposal.

There is no record of such a request having been made to my Department in recent years. If one were made it would of course be given all due consideration in the light of possible Irish interests.

I am not aware of the presence of an Irish community in Nicaragua which, together with the smallness of the trade links between the two countries, would make appointment of an honorary consul there quite unlikely.

Am I to take it that no request has been received from the Nicaraguan Government to the Irish Government for the establishment of diplomatic relations of some sort?

I am advised that there is no record of such a request having been made to my Department in recent years.

Am I to take it that no request has come from Nicaraguan Government for trade links with Ireland?

I have no information from the Department about any request coming to establish anything of that nature.