Irish neutrality not endangered by military spend rise, says Taoiseach 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that despite the need for EU members to develop greater defensive capability in the face of Russian aggression, Ireland’s military neutrality will not be endangered by increased military spending.

Mr Martin said Europe was “at a crossroads” in the face of serious security issues raised by increasing Russian militarisation.

“There is a real sense in parts of the European Union at the moment of an existential threat to their very survival, countries like Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, and others, when one talks to those leaders and their people, there is real fear about the degree to which Russia is militarising and spending so much money on its military,” he said.

“So there are clear implications for Europe in the years ahead in terms of developing more self-reliance, more capability.”

Mr Martin was speaking at the launch of a Focus Ireland social housing development in Mallow when he was asked about the war in Ukraine and the wider security implications for the rest of Europe.

“It’s been terrible war perpetrated by Russia, which has attacked civilian infrastructure and the war has led to hundreds of thousands of young people losing their lives in Ukraine and in Russia,” Mr Martin said.

“My own view is that the sanctions that Europe — and the US — have imposed on Russia have had an impact, I think whilst Russia may be spending a lot on military, I think the war has had its impact on Russia too, not just the terrible loss of lives, but on its economy and on its resilience. We have to assess it firmly, calmly, and then make decisions, but I do think Europe is at a crossroads in terms of its future direction in terms of how it deals with the changing geopolitical order.”

Asked by The Echo what this would mean for Irish military neutrality, Mr Martin said he was not saying anything about neutrality.

“Enhancing military capabilities is perfectly compatible with military neutrality,” he said.