Sir, – Taoiseach Simon Harris assures us that he conveyed the concerns of the Irish people on Gaza to US president Joe Biden at their meeting on Wednesday, but then makes clear that he did not tackle the pivotal issue of US arms supplies to Israel (“Harris says he ‘made clear the position of the Irish people’ on Gaza to US president”, News, October 10th). Nor, presumably, did he raise the related problem of unconditional US political and diplomatic support for Israel.
This is disappointing, to say the least. Mr Harris has spoken in condemnatory terms, rightly, about the failure of the so-called “international community” to halt the slaughter in Gaza. He reiterated those sentiments on Wednesday and his point is well made. However, one of the most distressing aspects of this failure has been the grotesque unwillingness of many governments, including the Irish Government, to accept that the US is a crucial part of the problem. Joe Biden could have ended the slaughter in Gaza a long time ago by simply denying the means to Israel. He has the power, but refuses to use it because it might interfere with broader US strategic interests in the region.
In their reluctance to explicitly demand an end to US political and military support for Israel, the Taoiseach and the Irish Government have shown themselves in truth to be a part of that general failure on Gaza by the “international community”.
A genuinely independent and less timid Irish foreign policy would see a more robust conversation with Joe Biden on the munitions issue, the immediate closing of Shannon Airport to the US military and the enactment of purposeful sanctions, including the Occupied Territories Bill, against Israel. – Yours, etc,
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FINTAN LANE,
Lucan,
Co Dublin.