Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Battlegroups are not up to anything. They are part of the European Common Security and Defence Policy and are in place to provide assistance in emergency peacekeeping, peace enforcement and humanitarian relief. It is important within the context of the EU, where we have common values and beliefs, that the Defence Forces will be equipped to respond appropriately to deal with humanitarian disasters and peacekeeping and peace enforcement issues. Battlegroups provide an opportunity for member state forces to work together in various compositions. There are 21 EU member states in NATO; the battlegroup concept provides for a degree of interaction and creates possibilities for interoperability and sharing and pooling of equipment. Co-operation needs to be developed and deepened to ensure that at a time of financial difficulty there is not an unnecessary duplication of resources in Europe in the defence area. The battlegroup concept is important and has nothing to do with our neutrality. It is about continuing to engage in Europe and to be seen to be available to assist when there are emergencies which require humanitarian interventions or where a European peacekeeping engagement emerges in some shape or form. I despair when this matter is constantly dug up as if our virgin neutrality is about to be violated. It is false nonsense and it gets tedious.