Brian Stanley (Laois, Independent)

Before we start the meeting, the Minister for Defence spoke in the last week on sending peacekeepers to Ukraine. It is obviously abhorrent what Russia is doing there at the moment, but he was speaking at the national day of commemoration for veterans and he said "Ireland certainly wouldn't recuse itself" from the conversation and would be "eager to assist". Lieutenant General Rossa Mulcahy said that he would provide military options for the Government if required, whether it was "a peace enforcement or peace keeping mission". I propose we write to the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence and ask him to clarify if it is the Government's position that we would be involved in peace enforcement. That could bring Irish forces into conflict with Russians. I am not making a judgment on it.