Neale Richmond
Ceist:338. Deputy Neale Richmond asked the Minister for Defence if he will provide a full report on the involvement of the Defence Forces in PESCO; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39738/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 1 December 2020
Ceisteanna (338)
Freagraí scríofa
Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) is a process under which groups of Member States can come together to develop capabilities in support of Common Security & Defence Policy operations.
The objective of PESCO is to generate coherent defence capabilities which will be available to Member States for national and multinational (EU, NATO, UN, etc.) missions and operations. This will enhance the EU’s capacity as an international security actor, to contribute to the protection of EU citizens, support international peace and security and maximise the effectiveness of defence spending by participating member States.
Forty seven PESCO projects have been launched to-date. These include projects in the areas of capability development and in the operational dimension. Each project is managed by the participating member States with oversight from the Council.
Ireland's participation in PESCO was agreed by Government and approved by Dáil Éireann prior to the Council Decision establishing PESCO on 11 December 2017. Ireland is a Participant in one PESCO project (Greek-led Upgrade of Maritime Surveillance) and also has Observer status on a further nine PESCO projects – (1) Deployable Military Disaster Relief Capability Package; (2) Maritime (semi) Autonomous Systems for Mine Countermeasures; (3) Cyber Threats and Incident Response Information Sharing Platform; (4) European Secure Software Defined Radio; (5) Military Mobility; (6) Energy Operational Function; (7) EU Radio Navigation Solution; (8) Counter Unmanned Aerial System; (9) Special Operations Forces Medical Training Centre. Ireland also participated in the German led project EU Training Mission Competence Centre, this project terminated in February 2020 with agreement of all members as it duplicated existing structures in the EU.
Defence Forces involvement in PESCO to-date has included participation in project meetings and the provision of Subject Matter Expertise to help inform Ireland's involvement in particular PESCO projects, either as a participant or an observer.