Mr. Barry Andrews:

One cannot compare the European Union to the constraints from Russia on the Security Council. I am critical of von der Leyen but we have had a net gain in our sovereignty from our membership of the European Union. There are times when we are upset with what it does but the P5 in the United Nations Security Council gives a veto over Irish foreign policy to Russia. We have to remember this discussion is happening in that context. When discussing defence, you have to have a threat analysis. The threat right now for the whole of Europe comes from Russia because Russia has decided it wants to go down the road of spheres of influence in Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and all of its neighbouring countries. Europe is reacting to that. To compare Ursula von der Leyen and say that somehow or another the European Commission is the same as Russia and the influence it has is absurd.