MINISTER FOR Defence Willie O'Dea has indicated that the Defence Forces deployment with a European peace enforcement mission (EUfor) in Chad may last longer than the initial one-year period.
Speaking in the Dáil yesterday, Mr O'Dea described as "ambitious" a deadline of March next to replace the EUfor mission with a United Nations mission in the troubled central African country.
He said if the deadline of March 15th next is met, Ireland would be asked to contribute to the UN force that replaces EUfor.
"If the ambitious deadline is not met the present operation will without doubt be continued in some shape or form and, again, we will be asked to contribute."
He said any decision to remain in Chad for longer than the planned March 2009 deadline would be made by the Government after a review of the situation on the ground in Chad.
His comments came as an EU force commander, speaking in Paris on European defence policy, said that if EUfor withdrew from Chad before the UN was ready to replace it, "chaos" may ensue.
Maj Gen Leakey said it was possible that those nations participating in EUfor may simply remain on in Chad after next March, but as part of a UN rather than EUfor deployment.
"Some may help the UN by saying we will remain there on a transition basis for the next six months until you are ready to take over," he told The Irish Times.
Gen Leakey said that it was too early to predict what would happen in Chad if the EUfor mission ended without a UN force taking over.
"It could be that there would be total chaos, a war breaking out, refugees and internally displaced people in chaos or it could be that in fact the effect of EUfor presence was to improve the internal political situation . . . so that there isn't a need for a follow-on force," he added.
Mr O'Dea described as "closed" a recent controversy that followed criticisms of Irish troops by an official from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Chad.
The official complained that the Irish had not done enough to protect UN staff during a rebel attack on their compound.
Replying to oral questions in the Dáil from Jack Wall TD (Lab), Mr O'Dea took issue with a subsequent report on the matter in The Irish Times.
The report noted that Mr O'Dea had issued a statement from Chad pointing out that the Government was committed to the Army's deployment there "up to March 2009 only".
The report stated that Mr O'Dea's issuing such an unprompted statement suggested that the Government was becoming nervous about the dangerous mission.
"Giving a straight answer to a straight question should not imply that I am in any way worried," Mr O'Dea told Mr Wall.
However, Mr O'Dea's remarks at the time were not made in response to questioning.
They were contained in a media statement he issued unprompted from Chad, as was reported at the time.