Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 September 2014
24. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Defence the position regarding his visit to the fringe meetings at the NATO summit in Wales under the auspices of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and the Partnership for Peace; if Irish neutrality would not be better served by Ireland's non-attendance at these events; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34550/14]
View answerAs Ireland is not a member of NATO, the question of attendance at the NATO summit in Wales did not arise. In accordance with usual practice, an invitation was extended to the Taoiseach to attend a meeting which took place on 4 September between NATO Heads of state and Government and non-NATO countries that contribute to the UN mandated and NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) mission in Afghanistan. I attended this meeting accompanied by a senior official from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. I also attended the meeting of 52 Defence Ministers, representing NATO members and partners. The main purpose of this meeting was to reaffirm the relationship with NATO and to discuss improvements to interoperability between NATO Member Countries and Partners.
Ireland will never deploy alone on peacekeeping missions. Interoperability with partners is central to the efficiency of such deployments. More importantly, the protection of our troops when deployed depends on interoperability with partners. This is achieved through membership of Partnership for Peace. Ireland’s involvement in Partnership for Peace has delivered significant improvements for the Defence Forces in terms of capability development and operational deployment. Training in this environment has been very beneficial in equipping Defence Forces personnel to comfortably operate alongside our European partners and troops from NATO countries and make a positive impact in contributing to international peace.
Ireland’s relations with NATO are conducted within the framework of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) and Partnership for Peace (PfP), which we joined in 1999. The EAPC is a forum for consultation involving all PfP participants on a wide range of issues, from peacekeeping, gender issues, peace and security to disaster relief.
