The probability of a conventional military attack on Ireland’s territory is considered as low but the security environment can be “volatile and unpredictable”, Minister for Defence Simon Coveney has warned.
He told the Dáil the threat of violence to the State from dissident groups in the North remained low but “it is still classed as severe in Northern Ireland”.
He said “Ireland is vulnerable to the broadening range of security threats that affect the world today” and “the retention of flexible and adaptable military capabilities provides a means to respond when required and is a practical approach to dealing with uncertainty”.
The deployment of explosive ordnance disposal teams, of troops to “robust” UN missions and of a naval vessel to rescue migrants highlighted the range of tasks required of the Defence Forces, he said.
Mr Coveney was speaking during a late night debate on the Government’s forthcoming White Paper on Defence, which is expected to be brought to Cabinet in the next two weeks.
It follows the green paper published in 2013 and to which 122 submissions were received, many of which had a particular focus on the State’s maritime domain.
Mr Coveney said that being an Irish soldier is one of the “most significant forms of patriotism” in the State. He wanted all personnel to be “proud” of their role and he thanked them for their commitment through the reforms that were “not just a cost saving exercise” but a reconfiguration of the Defence Forces.
He stressed that “Government policy in Ireland on neutrality is settled in terms of the maintenance of the triple lock” of UN, Government and Dáil approval before participating in international missions.
“That does not mean staying out of trouble all the time. It means Ireland is independent in what we do and don’t do in terms of international peacekeeping” he said.
Mr Coveney said three ships needed to be replaced along with military aircraft and decisions had to be made about the armoured personnel carrier fleet, which would require significant investment.
He believed there was scope to develop an International Institute for peace Support and Leadership at the Defence Forces training centre in the Curragh.
The Minister said he was also looking at a new employment support scheme with the involvement of the Defence Forces. It would be aimed at 18-24-year-olds and to “target individuals who might otherwise struggle to break out of cycles of disadvantage”. He said the paper would also set out revised roles for the Reserve Defence Forces.
Fianna Fáil defence spokesman Seán Ó Fearghaíl said there were “shades of a box ticking exercise” about the debate and said it was disappointing that they would only see a White paper two years after the green paper was produced.
He praised the Minister for his “responsible” approach to the White Paper including a symposium and the appointment of an external advisory committee but he expressed “serious concern about the fact that fundamental reorganisation of the Defence Forces took place under the auspices of the former minister Alan Shatter before publication”.
Mr Ó Fearghaíl said the decision in March 2011 to assign the defence portfolio as a subsidiary role to the Minister for Justice “indicated an essential lack of respect for the position”.
He said “we must commit ourselves to the restoration of defence as a lead portfolio in Cabinet as be a clear affirmation of the value we as a State must place on our Defence Forces”. He also said the numbers in the Defence Forces should rise from 9,500 to a minimum of 10,500 by 2025.
He also said the Naval Service was underdeveloped and undervalued. “Comparable nations, such as New Zealand, have a much greater maritime component in their defence forces.”
Sinn Féin defence spokesman Pádraig Mac Lochlainn broadly welcomed the review as an opportunity to “outline exactly how we would like a modern, efficient and professional Defence Force to stand by the long-held Irish desire for neutrality and independence”.
But he said he feared the Government “will use it to do the opposite, having seen successive Governments repeatedly undermine Ireland’s neutrality and attack the pay and entitlements of Defence Forces personnel”.
He said the change from three-brigade to a two-brigade structure and the closure of barracks across the State “has sapped the morale of the Defence Forces”.
Independent TD Mick Wallace said the green paper suggested research funding should be committed to advancing Defence Forces capabilities.
The Government had also agreed that Enterprise Ireland could also support research institutes for such capability development.
Mr Wallace asked “are we really planning to join the list of countries who profit from the industry of war, death and state surveillance”.
Independent TD Clare Daly said the green paper represented the continuation of a “deeper integration into the EU, the US and the Nato military axis”.
She said rather than spending more money on the securitisation of Europe, the Government should look at the “conditions of the members of the Defence Forces whose living standards have been butchered”.
Ms Daly said the Government and department were worried about “lone wolf” terrorist attacks but “I honestly think that if there ever was a lone wolf attack in Ireland, it would probably be in retaliation for the use of Shannon” by the US military.
“The reality is that this is the biggest threat to the security of the State.”
