Irish troops could be sent on a potentially dangerous mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of an EU force to safeguard new elections this June.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern confirmed yesterday that the EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana has asked the Government to supply troops on the mission.
Mr Ahern said in principle he would look favourably on the request if it satisfied the triple lock mechanism of UN, Government and Dáil approval to ensure Irish neutrality.
A deployment in Congo would have historical resonance for the Defence Forces, which undertook their first peacekeeping operation in the then Belgian Congo between 1960-1964.
Some 27 Irish soldiers died in the mission, including nine in an ambush in November 1960, the worst single incident in the Defence Forces' history.
Mr Solana has requested assistance from several other countries for the mission amid an initial reticence among EU countries to supply troops because of the risks involved in the mission and existing troop commitments in states such as Afghanistan and Iraq.
A spokeswoman for Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea said a decision would be made by the Government within the next four weeks on whether to take part.
She said that due to existing commitments of 760 troops abroad in Liberia, Kosovo and Bosnia just 90 Irish troops would be available for deployment in any proposed peacekeeping force.
Three years ago the French rebuffed an offer by the Government to send Irish Rangers to join the UN mission in Congo to help stabilise the state.
But France and the UN are now actively seeking the involvement of more EU troops to boost the Congo mission.
The UN initially made a request to the EU in December for a force of about 800 men to protect Congo's first free elections since independence from Belgium in 1961.
The EU wanted to announce the composition of the mission by the end of February but concerns in Germany and France, which are both reluctant to lead the mission, have delayed a final decision on the make-up of the contingent.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is recovering from the 1998-2002 war that cost four million lives and has left much of the country lawless. Despite the presence of 16,000 UN peacekeepers sporadic fighting continues ahead of the June elections.
The request from the EU for Irish troops to serve in Congo comes as Mr O'Dea starts a three-day visit to Liberia, where 480 Irish troops are based as part of a 15,000 strong UNMIL deployment there.
Mr O'Dea and the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Lieut Gen Jim Sreenan were this morning due to leave for the Liberian capital Monrovia. They will visit the Irish troops based at Camp Clara in the city. Mr O'Dea will also meet tomorrow with the new Liberian president Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. The Irish party will visit a number of NGOs before returning to Ireland on Thursday.