Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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16. To ask the Minister for Defence in view of recent hostilities in eastern Europe, his plans to review the State’s defence doctrine and resources, in particular the triple-lock policy which may impede future peacekeeping or other deployment needs in eastern Europe. [34545/14]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Green Paper on Defence, which was published in 2013, provided a comprehensive overview of the current defence policy framework and set out an assessment of the defence and security environment at that time. It also considered the relevance of the “triple lock” mechanism in a world where defence and security threats are becoming more interconnected, more diverse, less visible and less predictable than heretofore. The Green Paper noted the requirement for a UN resolution as part of the “triple lock” reflects the central importance of the UN in granting legitimacy to peace support and crisis management missions. The Green Paper also noted that at the same time, the “triple lock” also constitutes a self imposed, legal constraint on the State’s sovereignty in making decisions about the use of its armed forces.

The Green Paper recognised that on balance the advantages of retaining the “triple lock” mechanism can be seen as outweighing the disadvantages. Nonetheless it is an issue worthy of discussion in advance of the adoption of the next White Paper on Defence.

A key part of the development of the White Paper is the consideration of potential challenges to our defence and security environment that may emerge into the future. As recent events have highlighted, the defence and security environment can be volatile and unpredictable.

The identification of policy options for the defence aspects of the Government’s response to these challenges and the associated capability implications is another key part of the process. There must also be consideration of other demands that will be made of the Defence Organisation over the coming decade and the broad roles that Government may assign to the Defence Forces.

The White Paper on Defence will include an updated assessment of the future defence and security environment, with appropriate input from the Department of Defence, Department of the Taoiseach, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Department of Justice and Equality, Defence Forces and an Garda Síochána.

Working Groups comprising civil and military representatives from the Department of Defence and the Defence Forces are currently considering future operational demands and the defence capabilities required to meet projected future operational requirements. In the course of their deliberations, the Working Groups are taking into consideration the inputs received from a wide variety of stakeholders. This includes the views of international organisations which have been sought with a particular focus on likely future trends in international peace support operations.

Discussions have also been held with a range of other Government Departments on cross-cutting policy issues and likely future demands from Government bodies and State agencies. This includes the ongoing review of Ireland’s Foreign Policy and External Relations. These discussions are continuing, as required, throughout the White Paper process.

This ongoing work will underpin recommendations regarding defence provision for the next decade.