John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There is an attempt to further militarise the EU. We saw that quite recently when Ireland was named as one of 14 countries that support further militarisation through the rapid reaction force, which the Minister referenced previously. Not only can that venture be classified as being in contravention to Ireland’s long-standing and declared policy of neutrality, it also contradicts the Minister's intentions of presenting himself at the UN as an honest broker and a neutral voice in world affairs. It also represents a very clear snub of the non-aligned nations of the world that voted for Ireland in the belief that we were opting, as I said, for that honest broker.

I get why people join the Defence Forces. I get our active participation in neutrality and peacekeeping. There is a step in a completely different direction at European level, however. I have serious concerns about rowing back on our neutrality and all those arguments I have put forward. I look forward to the Minister's response.

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