Under the UN Charter, the UN Security Council has primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. Extremely regrettably however, no new peacekeeping mission has been approved by the council since 2014. The five permanent members of the council can use their veto power to prevent the Security Council from taking decisions, including those related to the mandates of peacekeeping operations. It could be argued that even the threat of the veto has impacted on new peacekeeping operations being proposed.
The proposed changes to the triple lock are not about Ireland turning its back on UN peacekeeping. Ireland is, and will remain, fully committed to the United Nations. The purpose of these modifications is to reinforce Ireland's ability to pursue an independent foreign policy by removing the power of UN Security Council permanent members to veto our national sovereign decisions. In addition to the modifications to the triple lock, changes to defence legislation are proposed that govern the deployment of Defence Force personnel overseas for purposes other than to serve as part of an international peacekeeping force, for example, to allow for short-term crisis management deployments in countries where hostilities have broken out, to evacuate Irish citizens.
The Deputy and the House can be assured however that any legislative proposals will remain fully consistent with the principles of the UN charter and international law. With regard to any future deployments, the Defence Forces are currently undergoing a process of consolidation relating to their overseas commitments and to prepare for future peacekeeping missions and crisis-management operations. This has included the withdrawal from UNDOF. The changing nature of demands and potential future mission profiles must be considered in the context of assets and capabilities that need to be acquired for overseas deployments that are becoming more challenging in the current security environment.
The Defence Forces continue to have a significant presence, with 400 troops currently serving overseas in the pursuit of peace. Most notable in this regard are our troops serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL, where an additional platoon of 33 Irish personnel will deploy in the coming months with the aim of enhancing force protection. This is a decision that has been approved and welcomed by the UN.