Ireland must increase defence budget 'to keep Russians at bay', warns ex-military adviser

The former director for European affairs on the White House’s national security council, Alexander Vindman, called for urgent investment in air and naval capabilities.

A former White House military adviser has recommended that Ireland treble its defence budget to keep “the Russians at bay from mucking around” in Irish-controlled waters.

Alexander Vindman, a retired US army lieutenant colonel, said Ireland’s defence budget — at 0.2% of GDP — was “woefully inadequate”, and called for urgent investment in air and naval capabilities.