Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 2 February 2023
4. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence his views and those of the Government on, “the triple lock”; and if he has any intention to change the current regime to a situation where the Government would have more flexibility to act militarily abroad. [5162/23]
View answerI want to ask the Minister about his attitude and that of the Government towards the triple lock mechanism, and whether he has any intention to change the current regime to a situation where the Government would have more flexibility to act militarily abroad.
As the Deputy knows, the triple lock mechanism, which sets out the requirements for the deployment of the Defence Forces for peacekeeping operations, is set down in legislation. The legislation provides that the operation must be mandated by the United Nations, approved by the Government and approved by way of a resolution of Dáil Éireann. Any modification to the triple lock requirements for peacekeeping operations overseas, where the Irish Government can deploy Defence Forces personnel, would require a change in primary legislation to remove the requirement for the operation to be mandated by the United Nations.
We need to look at this and have a discussion on it because of where we are with the United Nations, in particular, with the composition of the Security Council and the behaviour of certain of its members. The significant reluctance to facilitate peacekeeping missions could impinge on the sovereignty of the Irish State in deciding whether it wants to participate in peacekeeping missions into the future. There is a real dark cloud over whether there will be future UN-mandated peacekeeping missions. I would welcome an Oireachtas debate and discussion on this, free from calling people out, name-calling or labelling. We need an informed and mature debate on this because the way things have evolved is such that Russia has a veto on whether Ireland takes part in peacekeeping in the future. We need to reflect on that. I genuinely believe that, having thought about it over the last six months when this issue has been raised. There is a cause for reflection on the part of all of us.
It was with that cause for reflection that I was motivated to ask the question. I assume I have a different opinion from the Tánaiste, in that I believe the triple lock has given us strength until this point and I do not want to infringe in any way on our neutrality, although we may disagree as to whether it would or not. Why not have the debate as opposed to spending the past year or more listening to the Minister's predecessor and other members of the Government saying we need to talk about Irish defence or neutrality? Let us have that conversation at this point.
The Tánaiste said we would need to change primary legislation if we were to reconsider the triple lock. That cannot be imposed either on this House or the population so let us have that debate and make space for it. I encourage the Tánaiste to do that. Let us stop talking about this. The Tánaiste should give us the opportunity to have that debate.
The Deputy has asked the question and I have given him my views. This is a debate and maybe it is the catalyst for the commencement of a debate. We will shortly commence work on a strategic defence review and this is a serious issue that we need to consider. Peacekeeping is a noble Irish tradition. It has been a hallmark of the execution of our foreign policy and has brought great honour to the nation, involving generations of peacekeepers. There is a real possibility now that there will not be a UN peacekeeping mission for some time, particularly given how the world is evolving and how certain powers are using other militias and paramilitary groups to exert their will in certain parts of the world. We need to take stock of all of that reality and have that informed debate. I have repeatedly said this. Wearing my Department of Foreign Affairs hat, I will say that we are also looking at that discussion and at what type of forum we would develop to discuss the wider issues of the modern day threats to the security of the State and the area of clarifying and working through our position around military neutrality and so forth.
It was my intention to raise this matter in a respectful manner so that we could create a catalyst for such a debate. Is it the Government's intention to bring forward primary legislation in this term to remove the triple lock?
No. That is not in the programme for Government.
Is that the answer?
The programme for Government commits to the retention of the triple lock but the context has changed because of the war in Ukraine and the behaviour of Russia on the UN Security Council. If we look at Ireland's performance on the UN Security Council for the past two years, it has been quite effective and impactful, particularly in facilitating humanitarian access to areas of significant and severe conflict like Syria and Ethiopia.
Many of the authorities there did not like what Ireland was doing because we were defending those who desperately needed humanitarian access. It was a lesson to us too. It opened up some insights as to where this is all going. We need a debate on that in the House. Perhaps we could organise a discussion at committee level first. In the interests of the peacekeeping tradition, which I am talking about first and foremost, I want to see Ireland continue to play its role on the peacekeeping front primarily. That is our greatest strength. We are not a military power and we never will be a military power of any consequence, but we can contribute significantly to peace in the world and to the assistance of people who are under threat because of war and starvation.
