The Defence Forces have come out in favour of Irish participation in the proposed EU battlegroups provided they are taking part in UN missions, writes Deaglán de Bréadún, Foreign Affairs Correspondent.
The battlegroup proposal for peace missions will get a boost from the UN Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, when he addresses the Forum on Europe in Dublin Castle this morning.
Irish involvement in these new military units would be strictly subject to the so-called "triple-lock" procedure requiring a Government decision, Dáil approval and a UN mandate.
The Defence Forces submission, described as "positive in relation to participation", was made last month. The issue will now be a matter for the new Minister for Defence, Mr O'Dea, and his Cabinet colleagues.
In his forum address, Mr Annan, who arrived in Dublin last night for a four-day official visit, is likely to highlight the importance of EU-UN co-operation in crisis situations. He has already welcomed the proposed battlegroups, which also received strong support from the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, in a speech last week in Addis Ababa.
Each battlegroup would consist of about 1,500 soldiers drawn from different member-states and would be ready for action at ten days' notice under the political control and strategic direction of the EU Council of Ministers, through its Political and Security Committee.
The first groups are due to be ready next year and ten units are planned.
In an interview with The Irish Times this week, Mr Annan held up the French-led Operation Artemis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo last year as a prime example of how such a force could be used to quell or contain a developing crisis.
Irish military personnel were involved in the supporting HQ for Operation Artemis and would be expected to play a role in similar operations in the future.
Mr Annan is a long-time admirer of the Irish contribution to the UN, particularly in the sphere of peacekeeping, and is expected to highlight that role in his Dublin Castle remarks.
During Ireland's European presidency in the first half of this year, the Government pushed hard to promote greater EU-UN co-operation, particularly in the military sphere, building on the joint EU-UN declaration on crisis-management signed during the previous Italian presidency. EU participation in UN peacekeeping activities is currently at a low level.
Mr Annan is bound to address the crisis in Sudan which has been declared as genocide by the US. He has appointed a commission to investigate whether genocide is in fact taking place.