The office of the EU Commissioner for External Relations, Mr Chris Patten, said that he does not intend to raise the case of the three Irish republicans in jail in Colombia during his official trip to the country later this week.
Mr Patten is on a five-day trip to Latin America. He is due to meet the Colombian president, Mr Alvaro Uribe, as well as other senior members of the government, and human rights workers.
According to a statement from Mr Patten's office, the meetings with government members "will provide an opportunity to express the EU's solidarity with the Colombian people against the threats of terrorism, drug traffic and illegal groups".
However, despite a request from Irish MEP Mr Niall Andrews, Mr Patten does not intend to raise the case of the three men.
"Their case is not on the agenda," one senior EU official told The Irish Times.
Yesterday, Mr Andrews announced he would be travelling to Colombia next week with four other Irish politicians, as part of a campaign aimed at freeing Mr Niall Connolly, Mr Martin McCauley and Mr Jim Monaghan.
The three men have been in jail in Colombia since August 2001. They have since stood trial on charges of training FARC guerrillas in IRA bomb-making techniques and of using false passports.
They have denied the charges, which carry a sentence of up to 28 years.
Yesterday, the Bring Them Home Campaign called on the Government to make a public intervention in the campaign on behalf of the men.
Mr Andrews will travel to Colombia with Fianna Fáil colleague, Sen Mary White. Other members of the delegation include: Sinn Féin Northern Assembly member and leader of the campaign, Ms Caitríona Ruane; Sinn Féin TD Mr Seán Crowe; and Independent TD Mr Finian McGrath.
The judgment in the trial has been delayed since it finished last summer, and is not expected until next month at the earliest.