Paul Murphy
Question:252. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs whether he considers that the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 was within the parameters of the UN Charter. [53028/23]
View answerThursday, 30 November 2023
Questions (252)
Written answers
On 20 March 2003, the Dáil adopted a motion on the invasion of Iraq, which reaffirmed Ireland's commitment to the United Nations as the guarantor of collective global security and the appropriate forum for the resolution of disputes threatening international peace and security.
The motion further recalled Ireland’s statement as a member of the Security Council on the adoption of Resolution 1441 that it would be for the Security Council to decide on any ensuing action in the event of Iraqi non-compliance with Resolution 1441, and regretted that the US-led coalition found it necessary to launch the campaign in the absence of agreement on a further UN Security Council resolution.
In his statement to the House in the context of the Dáil motion, the then-Taoiseach acknowledged that there was no clear legal consensus on whether there was a mandate for the use of force against Iraq, based on previous Security Council resolutions. He noted that the arguments put forward by the US-led coalition asserting the existence of a mandate were also supported by a number of countries which were not participating in the military action.