Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I will try to spend the majority of my time discussing the consultative forum and the findings from it but inevitably we will not be able to step away from other events that are taking place in the world, particularly in the Middle East, and from our role within those events.

There was an assertion in the consultative forum's conclusion: "that Ireland’s policy of neutrality is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for Ireland’s global standing as a force for good in international affairs". That was contained in the findings of the report. I found that reminiscent of the Tánaiste's comments in the summer, that Ireland's neutrality was not a lucky charm to protect Ireland and that a reimagining is needed. Those comments were made in the context of Russia's grotesque invasion of Ukraine but those were the words he used. I will return to that point but I want to refute the assertion made about neutrality in that consultative forum. There is no evidence for it in the reality of Ireland's position in the world as it is. It is almost revisionist of the position we have etched out painstakingly through decades of work by Irish politicians and diplomats at UN level over the course of over 70 years. Let us not forget the people who put themselves in harm's way in the name on UN peacekeeping missions.

From the outset, the values of self-determination, anti-imperialism and anti-militarism were derived from Ireland's colonial and post-colonial experience and have defined our contribution to peace proposals at the United Nations.

Mr. Liam Cosgrave, our first Minister for External Affairs to attend the UN, outlined that Ireland is unique in that it is the only western country that has a long experience of being treated as a colony, not only of being temporarily occupied during a war but of being governed over many generations by a foreign country whose rule people rejected and strove to shake off. He said this at a UN plenary meeting in 1956. Ireland's diplomats and Ministers have used this history to claim an understanding of the psychology of opposing belligerents and have always appealed to both sides in a conflict, where possible. This is reminiscent of the Taoiseach's words shortly after 7 October, when he asked us to take a step back and understand the psyche of some our European counterparts who would not even call for a ceasefire. Let us also understand our own psyche and our own position. Mr. Frank Aiken, who was a member of the Tánaiste's party, said that like many of our fellow members of the UN, Ireland was a young state but had a people with a proud and ancient history. He said that coming from such a country, he spoke in the hope that Ireland's profound convictions, born of long experience of tragic frustration, may carry weight with the UN Assembly. That was on 23 September 1957 and in the present day, Irish ambassadors are aware that most UN member states that are small or former colonies identify with Ireland's size and history and with our commitment to the rule of law, equality, justice and, where possible, multilateralism. They also identify with our discourse, policies and voting positions on decolonisation and disarmament at the UN. This is the soft power that is invaluable to our position in the world and is something we should not let go of lightly. Mr. Aiken insisted that Ireland should maintain independence and not become part of any tight group bound by agreements to support one another no matter what the subject for discussion. Radical and groundbreaking proposals from Aiken led to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, which is probably one of the greatest achievements of Irish diplomacy, and diplomacy as a whole, over the past 100 years.

Since our foundation as a State, it has been precisely our position of, and adherence to, neutrality that has given us legitimacy on the world stage and any erosion of this impacts our standing. This is an important point to make as politicians on the Government side, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, started to see neutrality almost as a form of weakness on the global stage when it is the exact opposite and always has been. The sense of being a maverick independent is what has given us credibility and legitimacy and given us our place. Now, when the dogs of war and the hawks are assembling, is it the Irish position to simply go and give a little bark behind them or will we stand up and be a voice for peace?

Why is the Tánaiste shaking his hands?

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