John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

The Minister of State has repeated what the Minister said at the conference instead of answering my question. Why is the number of officers serving overseas in various missions not sustainable? Where has the Minister found a shortfall in our Defence Forces? Where does he want these officers to serve? Are they needed to serve in various EU military committees or for duties in Ireland, as Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Jim Sreenan, seemed to indicate at the RACO conference? He said that Ireland must remain vigilant against possible terrorist attacks. Would these potential terrorist attacks mean we need more officers at home? Will the Minister of State spell out in detail why we need to re-balance the number of officers and where they are supposed to go?

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