Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

While the report of the Commission on the Defence Forces predates the Russian invasion of Ukraine it does mention the threat Russia poses. It states, "Ireland’s global geostrategic environment, looking out to 2030, will be characterised by intensified great power competition." In an era of intensified great power competition, the commission report states that Ireland can expect, among other things, "A growing ambition of the EU and some of its Member States to pursue strategic autonomy and for the EU to continue aiming to become a credible security actor on the global stage." How does the Tánaiste view this? When he attends meetings of the EU Foreign Affairs Council with regard to defence, does he get the sense that this is true? What is his response to that? The French ambassador made some comments in an interview with the Irish Examiner yesterday. I would like to hear the Tánaiste's thoughts on his comments that Ireland, among other EU countries, needs to pull its weight when it comes to increasing defence capabilities.

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