Irish troops providing bomb disposal expertise for one of the new EU battlegroups designed to assist the UN will be well up to the international standards required, Army Chief of Staff, Lieut Gen Dermot Earley predicted yesterday.
Some 78 personnel, drawn mainly from the Western Brigade, have spent the past five days training at Kilworth Army Camp in Co Cork in preparation for deployment as part of the 2,800-strong Nordic battlegroup which also includes Swedes, Norwegians, Finns and Estonians.
Lieut Gen Earley said the participation in the battlegroup represented a continuation of activities which the Army has been engaged in for the past four decades as part of its UN peace-keeping duties in Lebanon, Liberia and elsewhere.
"It's a significant development in one sense but in another sense, we've been participating in battlegroup-like activities for a long time in many overseas missions - the only difference is that in this case, we come together and exercise together before we deploy."
The 78-strong unit under the command of Comdt Johnny Whittaker includes an escort platoon of 25 soldiers, 15 engineers involved in search and clearance, an explosives disposal team of 12, five medical personnel, five communications personnel and seven transport staff.
Lieut Gen Earley said the performance of the unit would be evaluated internally at the end of the 12-day training period and they would then be sent to Sweden in October when they will be evaluated by Swedish officers who will lead the battle-group.
"I think we're a leader in terms of explosive ordnance disposal, improvised explosive devices disposal, specialist searches - the standards we want to attain are the highest possible and I've no doubt that when we go for the international evaluation, we'll meet it head on."
The Nordic battlegroup will be on standby from January 1st until June 30th, 2008 and like all UN peacekeeping missions involving Irish troops, will be subject to the triple lock mechanism of UN mandate, Government and Oireachtas approval, said Lieut Gen Earley.
Comdt Whittaker explained yesterday's training operation involved the infantry securing the perimeter around an abandoned vehicle believed to contain an explosive device, engineers then clearing the area and bomb disposal experts rendering the vehicle safe. Among those attending yesterday's exercise was Brig Gen Karl Engelbrektson, of the Swedish army, who will command the battlegroup.
He said he was confident that with Ireland's fine record of UN peacekeeping, the Irish Army bomb disposal unit would prove a valuable part of the battlegroup.