asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has made representations to the Soviet authorities on the reported serious escalation of the Soviet military intervention in Afghanistan; and the reply that has been received to such representations.

4.

asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if there is confirmation of recent newspaper reports of large-scale casualties resulting from the Soviet offensive in Afghanistan; and if he will give details of the information that is available on the matter.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 3 and 4 together. The last reported increase in Soviet military activity in Afghanistan took place in April and May of this year with the severe bombing and shelling of the city of Herat and of the Shomali region. My information is that there were between 3,000 and 6,000 casualties as a result of this Soviet action.

Have the Government issued any public statement of condemnation of that activity?

The Government's position in relation to the conflict generally was set out by the Minister in the course of his address to the UN General Assembly on 3 October. He indicated that a political settlement to that conflict was desirable, based on UN resolutions. Of course our attitude to the infringements of the rights of the Afghans is well known.

My question asked whether representations have been made to the Soviet authorities in regard to those incidents but the Minister has not replied to that. Have any representations been made to the Soviet authorities in regard to the escalation and the massacre of between 3,000 and 6,000 people?

I should point out to the Deputy that the events in question took place last April and May.

These questions were tabled since then.

I do not have any information that any individual representations have been made by the Government, but representations were made through the Presidency of the EEC. Generally in matters of this kind Community action is what we regard as most appropriate.

Is the Minister aware of the most recent massacre of civilians in Afghanistan and would he agree that there is all-party agreement on the position taken by the Government in this matter?

I agree.

Has the most recent incident in Afghanistan been brought to the notice of the Department?

The Department are constantly in touch with developments in Afghanistan, but in that unhappy country atrocities are taking place literally every day.

This might not be consistent with our policy of neutrality.

I did not think the Deputy believed in neutrality.

It is not the selective neutrality propounded by the Leader of the Deputy's party.