Dáil debates
Wednesday, 19 March 2025
Ceisteanna - Questions
Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements
4:40 pm
Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source
The informal EU leaders' retreat in February 2025 focused on an increase in Europe's defence capabilities by 30%. It also discussed other issues of co-operation with the US and UK. I have heard the Taoiseach and other TDs in the Chamber today talk about the fact that we are living in a world that has becoming more brutal, more divisive, more militaristic and more nakedly imperialistic. However, the way to counter that is not for Europe to tool up and arm itself. In fact, some of the people who were supporting the naked imperialism in terms of Gaza are also constituent parts of the EU, namely Germany and France. All of these people are sending weapons and arms for the Israeli attacks on Palestine, for example.
The other thing is that the Taoiseach said he would go to the US and be honest, but he was not honest in that he deliberately foregrounded Donald Trump as being an agent of peace. Now we have seen a brutal attack on Gaza, leaving 400 people dead in the biggest single attack since 2023, and all I have heard from the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste has been very meek condemnation. The Taoiseach has not called it a war crime.
You have not called out what happened. You can roll your eyes-----
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