Row rages over Bush’s Shannon troop meeting

US President George Bush did not need permission to rally US troops on Irish soil, Foreign Affairs Minister Dermot Ahern has said.

Mr Bush outraged anti-war campaigners when, during a recent refuelling stop at Shannon Airport, he disembarked from Air Force One and held a ‘meet and greet’ with 200 Middle East-bound US soldiers.

Peace activists labelled it a gross insult to Ireland’s sovereignty and policy of neutrality, while the Green Party said it was clear the White House viewed this country as a “de facto 51st state” of the US.

Asked by Sinn Féin TD Aengus Ó Snodaigh whether Mr Bush had followed protocol during the stopover, Mr Ahern responded: “There are a number of protocols which are followed in relation to state and official visits to Ireland by foreign heads of state. However, it should be noted that President Bush was not in Ireland on a state or official visit.”

The Department of Foreign Affairs was notified of the stopover, however, and permission was granted for Air Force One to land in accordance with the normal procedures.

But the president did not need permission to disembark and rally his troops, Mr Ahern said.

“President Bush’s meeting with US military personnel at the airport appears to have been a spontaneous act. Such personnel were, of course, in transit as part of a multinational force authorised by the United Nations Security Council. Permission for this meeting was not required,” he said.

The US delegation availed of Shannon to refuel while on the way to Afghanistan. They also stopped over on the return flight, but Mr Bush remained aboard Air Force on that occasion.

More than 500 personnel from the garda, army and air corps were drafted into Shannon to provide security for each of the stopovers, which enhanced the risk of a terrorist attack here, according to the Green Party.

“There can be no doubt that the appearance of President Bush in Shannon, along with American troops, increases the likelihood of an attack on this country from terrorists,” said Green TD John Gormley at the time.