Ireland 'not able to defend itself from air, sea, or cyberattack'

Fianna Fáil senator Malcolm Byrne said the issue of defence must be treated as a priority. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

Ireland is not able to defend its air space, seas, or cyberspace in the event of an attack, Fianna Fáil senator Malcolm Byrne has claimed.

He made the comment after receiving a response from the Government in the Seanad on the state of the country’s defences.

Mr Byrne asked Defence Minister Simon Coveney about Ireland’s current defence capabilities in the event of a violation of Irish air space or maritime area, or a cyberattack by a foreign power.

He said the response, provided by Fine Gael TD Josepha Madigan on behalf of the minister, did not reassure him.

“I appreciate that you’re answering on behalf of the Department of Defence, but I would be concerned because my question that I’m asking is around our defence capability,” said Mr Byrne.

“If we faced an air incursion, or if we faced a sea incursion, or if we faced a serious cyberattack on critical infrastructure in the State, can we be confident that we would be able to address those attacks?”

He said that one of the marks of sovereignty was the ability of a state to defend and protect that sovereignty.

On the basis of the response that is here and the evidence that is presented, it is very clear that Ireland cannot defend our sovereignty in the event of an air incursion, in the event of an incursion of maritime space, or a cyberattack,” he said.

Reading the response supplied by the Department of Defence, Ms Madigan, who is a minister of state in the Department of Education, detailed the investment in the Defence Forces in recent years.

She said the defence department received a capital allocation under the National Development Programme of €566m over the 2022-2025 timeframe.

Ms Madigan said Mr Coveney intended to bring an action plan on the Commission on the Defence Forces Report, published last February, to the Cabinet before the summer recess.

Minister of State Josepha Madigan defended the Government's defence plans. Picture: Leon Farrell / Photocall Ireland

Mr Byrne said he welcomed indications from the minister that defence spending would increase in the order of around €500m, which would represent a 50% increase in funding.

However, he said that based on recommendations in the Commission on the Defence Forces Report, €500m was a “somewhat conservative” increase.

He said the commission set out what was needed for an ambitious level of investment, which would bring our spending in line with countries of a similar size.

This would see spending treble to €3bn per year, which the commission said would see Ireland providing a “credible defence”.

Mr Byrne said that Finland, also a non-aligned country for the time being, had a budget of €2.8bn. He said it had announced a further increase of €2bn in its budget.

He said Russian aeroplanes had breached Irish air space in the past, but that Ireland was reliant on the British Royal Air Force to intervene.

Mr Byrne also referred to the plans for a Russian naval exercise in Irish-controlled waters earlier this year.

The potential damage there, if they had have done anything to the transatlantic cables, would have been enormous,” he said.

Mr Byrne said the issue must be treated as a priority.

Ms Madigan said it was being treated as such by Mr Coveney and the Government, and agreed there was a need for more debate on defence and security.