Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Essentially, what it means is that we do not want to be restricted to humanitarian assistance only. There are missions that may necessitate disarmament. Ireland has been involved very successfully in the UN mission to Liberia. Peacekeeping and peacemaking sometimes involves a range of things. The Lisbon treaty upgraded the kind of missions that battle groups can get involved in. At no stage is this about being part of conflict or war; it is about trying to prevent it.

We cannot decide to be part of a battle group that is deployed without actually coming back to the Oireachtas, having a debate and ensuring that the triple lock applies. For Ireland to be part of the deployment of a battle group, were it to be deployed, there would have to be an UN mandate and the approval of both the Dáil and the Government. If there is a fear that we could be dragged into conflict by the back door because we are part of a battle group, people should know that that cannot happen unless we choose to be part of it. There are safeguards. In the vast majority of circumstances, if a battle group is to be deployed, it will be deployed in a spirit with which I think Ireland will be comfortable. We will have to pass the usual triple-lock test before our troops can be part of a mission.