Speaking at a press briefing after his address to RACO delegates, the Minister for Defence agreed that the Army's role in the Border area should be reviewed following the Belfast Agreement.
Referring to comments made by the Chief-of-Staff of the Defence Forces on Tuesday, Mr Smith said change could not happen overnight.
However, in his view the situation on this side of the Border did not match the withdrawal of British troops from the North.
The Minister said he would consider the RACO request for representation on the consultative group which he is chairing to implement the Price Waterhouse review of the Naval Service and Air Corps.
A decision on Ireland's membership of Partnership for Peace would be made before the end of next year, and independently of the White Paper on Defence, the Minister said. The two issues were separate. He could not prejudge a Government decision on PfP, which would be taken after a full and open debate, but reiterated that it would not adversely affect the State's neutrality.
The Minister said criticisms made by the president of RACO, Cmdt Bryan Wallace, yesterday came as no surprise to him. The closure of Army barracks would never have gone ahead if there had been consultation beforehand, he said. "I had to be very decisive."