Open Letter to the Taoiseach by International Organisations
Ireland is a neutral country. A central component of that neutrality is the Triple Lock. It stipulates that Irish troops can only be deployed on overseas missions if there is approval from:
- the cabinet,
- Dáil Éireann – Ireland’s lower house of parliament,
- and there is a UN mandate.
A three-tiered approval mechanism to authorise the deployment of troops to highly complex and volatile environments, including conflict zones, makes good sense. Yet in recent days the Irish government announced plans to bring legislation before the cabinet to undo it. This is a fundamental policy shift that will seriously weaken Irish neutrality. It could see Irish troops being deployed, not to keep the peace within a UN mandated mission, but to wage war as part of a military alliance.
We firmly believe in neutrality as a means to actively prevent the outbreak of war and recognise that the Triple Lock is vital for preserving Ireland’s neutrality, particularly amid escalating global instability and conflict. We wrote to the Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) to convey our alarm at the erosion of a core component of Irish neutrality.
You can read the full letter below.
Continue reading “Alarm at Irish Government Plans to Dismantle Ireland’s Triple Lock”