The Government’s decision to permit US war planes use Irish airspace and refuel at Irish airports in the wake of last week’s terrorist attack in the US has been condemned by the Green Party.
Party spokesman Mr John Gormley TD claimed the decision had dragged Ireland into a military conflict that could have serious consequences for the country.
Mr Gormley said: "The Irish people have expressed their solidarity and sympathy for the American people in the wake of these atrocities."
"But are we to take from that the Irish people agree with the bombing of Afghanistan? I don't think they do.
"The Dail has not debated this issue at all. I believe an attack on Afghanistan will simply make a bad situation worse.
"We have agreed to give them (the Americans) use of our airports for a military action of which we know nothing, or very little", he said.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr Brian Cowen will detail the offer to make the airports and airspace available to a United States response to last week's terrorist attacks at a meeting in Washington next week with American Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell.
Ireland's offer was confirmed in Brussels last night by Taoiseach Mr Ahern during the emergency European Union summit.
Today Mr Cowen defended a failure to mention the move during a specially-recalled session of the Dail, earlier in the week, when the New York and Washington attacks were condemned by all party leaders.
He said: "The basis upon which this offer can made is under the Air Navigation Foreign Military Aircraft Order of 1952, and the Foreign Affairs Minister is the requisite minister whose permission is required."
Fine Gael foreign affairs spokesman, Mr Jim O'Keeffe TD, said he backed the decision to support the United Nations resolution on the issue, but criticised the way it had been dealt with by the Government.
"We should make it clear that we fully back the UN Security Council resolution on this, but that in our view that authorises an approach which is based on justice and the prevention of further terrorist attacks, rather than on revenge and retaliation.
"We should make it clear our support is for measured acts, which are targeted and focused."
Mr Cowen said: "We have not given a blank cheque and nobody has asked us for one. We are simply expressing our solidarity with the United States as members of the international community, and demonstrating it as well.
"The government is simply standing four square behind the UN resolution."
Ireland takes over the chairmanship of the UN Security Council on Monday week.
Additional reporting by PA
