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

I appreciate the Deputy's continuing interest in my having possible gems of wisdom. All members of the Fine Gael Party always have interesting things to say on a broad range of issues.

Interoperability is like pooling and sharing, a relevant issue in the context of member states dealing with common security or defence issues or, as I said earlier, dealing with co-operation in EU-UN missions. It is important when engaging with partners in such missions that we complement each other and that people can properly communicate. Pooling and sharing also means member states can save resources in cases where there is a need for common resources for a particular mission by removing the unnecessary duplication of expenditure.

Many of the issues that come up at these meetings are security issues. How do we in Europe best deal with issues of international terrorism and cybersecurity? What threats does cybercrime pose to essential utilities in member states or important businesses on which the economic base of the country may be dependent? Cybersecurity is a cross-cutting issue because it can fall within both defence and policing issues.

Being in the unusual position of having both the defence and the justice briefs, I can see the need at a European level for greater connectivity in this area. It is an issue I have discussed with my colleagues. At Justice Council meetings one has justice ministers talking about cybercrime and cybersecurity while another group of ministers on the defence side is talking about the very same issues. There is a need for connectivity in how we approach these issues.

There are many interesting and important issues in the defence area that we are going to prioritise during the Irish EU Presidency. It will provide a forum for the exchange of ideas along with the opportunity to discuss current EU-related defence issues and their impact internationally, all of which inform ongoing developments in the area of Common Security and Defence Policy. A positive and active agenda under the Common Security and Defence Policy is planned for our Presidency which will demonstrate Ireland's full support for the EU role in crisis management, international peace and security and our positive re-engagement with the European Union generally.

See this speech in context