Irish troops to join EU force in world hot-spots

IRISH troops could soon find themselves soldiering with the British Army in world hot-spots as part of an EU plan.

Defence Minister Willie O’Dea committed Irish troops to front-line rapid reaction peacekeeping forces at a meeting of the 25 EU defence ministers in Brussels yesterday.

The Government has not decided how many army personnel to commit to the battle groups but Mr O’Dea said they will have to come out of the 850 already committed to peacekeeping.