Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Yes, there have been. Consistently, for years, there have been efforts by Irish diplomats and our permanent representative in the UN. Every Irish Government for many years has put forward the idea that the UN Security Council needs to be reformed. As recently as last week, I was articulating this in international fora.

We should be clear on this. The proposals to amend the triple lock came about long before there was any talk of peacekeepers in Ukraine or anywhere else. As the Deputy said, this has been worked on for quite a period of time, so it is not a Ukraine-specific legislative proposal. I want to be clear on that. Let us take the hypothetical case of Ukraine, however. We all want to see peace in Ukraine but, of course, we want to see peace that is fair, in line with the UN Charter, respects Ukraine's territorial integrity and is not a carve-up of a country. Ukraine is not in anyone's gift. If there is peace, however, and if there is a process and an invitation for peacekeepers, I am not satisfied that we have to sit idly by and wait for Vladmir Putin to say whether Irish men and women from Óglaigh na hÉireann can play a role in the peacekeeping. That is the decision of this Government, not of any despots.

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