A chara, – Does Fine Gael intend to end Ireland’s neutrality by stealth? The party’s ardfheis vote in favour of abandoning the triple lock signifies an unwillingness to be bound by UN decisions regarding peacekeeping, ostensibly because of Russia’s veto power in the Security Council (“Minister for Foreign Affairs backs change to ‘triple-lock’ as ‘sensible’”, News, November 19th).
That the permanent members of the Security Council wield disproportionate power within the UN is indisputable. However, Fine Gael’s solution of arrogating to the Government the power to engage in military operations without a UN mandate suggests the party is intent on committing Ireland to military operations under other auspices: those of Nato and the EU’s Pesco (Permanent Structured Cooperation). – Is mise,
DOMINIC CARROLL,
Ardfield,
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Co Cork.
Sir, – I wish to disagree with Green Party leader Eamon Ryan’s defence of the triple lock (“Ryan says Irish neutrality triple lock ‘gives us strength’ and should be kept”, News, November 21st), in particular, the requirement for UN approval for Irish troop deployments on peace support missions.
Irish neutrality is not, and never was, dependent on this particular “lock”. We must remember that our policy on neutrality, however modified since, was well established long before we joined the UN. Also, to suggest that a Russian veto on Irish participation in such operations is acceptable, simply because it has “always been the case”, is a very weak argument. Such subservience to the veto powers of the five permanent members of the Security Council does not strengthen our neutrality but weakens it. – Yours, etc,
DORCHA LEE,
(Colonel, retired),
Navan,
Co Meath.