Higgins comments on triple lock and neutrality 'unfair', says Taoiseach

Taoiseach Micheál Martin rejected recent comments from former President Michael D Higgins that Ireland may be "sliding into" military alliances such as Nato, saying: "We don't have the military capacity to be engaged in wars or taking sides in conflict. I would have thought that was apparent to most people."

Taoiseach Micheál Martin: I respect Michael D, but I think the comments were unfair… We’re not sliding, I want to make that very clear.' Picture: Cillian Sherlock/PA

Michael D Higgins’s suggestion that Ireland is sliding into a military alliance by abolishing the triple lock is “unfair”, the Taoiseach has said.

Micheál Martin rejected the former President’s criticism of the Government’s policy, saying Ireland has no intention of joining a military alliance such as Nato.

In an interview with the Irish Examiner last week, Mr Higgins raised concerns about the Government’s proposals to change the triple lock.

The Dáil voted by 79 to 71 last week to change the system around the deployment of peacekeeping troops, ending the requirement for UN approval. 

The Government aims to have the legislation enacted by the end of the year allowing peacekeepers to be sent overseas with Government and Dáil approval.

Mr Higgins said he believes that Ireland is "absolutely" sliding into military alliances.

"I think that it's less than honest not to give the full story when you're talking about going into preparatory alliances; and I really do feel that, because I dealt with senior army people in my 15 years as president,” Mr Higgins told this newspaper.

"In fact, actually, what you're having — and critics are right in saying it — is that people are sliding into things rather than choosing to decide to go into things."

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The Taoiseach said in 2002 during the Nice referendum, that the Government inserted a prohibition on joining a military alliance in the Constitution.

“I met with former President Higgins on many occasions,” Mr Martin said. "He knows we have no intention of joining Nato, so we made that very clear as a Government.

“I respect Michael D, but I think the comments were unfair… We’re not sliding, I want to make that very clear.”

The Taoiseach said accusations that Irish neutrality would be “sacrificed up” by the government have cropped up every “five or six years”.

“People are saying we want to sacrifice neutrality,” Mr Martin said. "It hasn't happened. We're militarily neutral. We will remain militarily neutral."

On Mr Higgins' comments criticising a lack of effort to reform the UN Security Council, Mr Martin said experienced politicians “know that reform of the UN is a long process, and a very challenging process”.

“I think to say we're not doing enough on that is not a strong analysis or a fair comment,” Mr Martin said.

The Taoiseach said the Security Council is “faltering”, and it did not have a clear strategy on peacekeeping.

“We don't have the military capacity to be engaged in wars or taking sides in conflict,” Mr Martin said. "I would have thought that was apparent to most people."

Earlier, when it was put to him that Mr Higgins had said that the Government had been “less than honest”, European Affairs minister Thomas Byrne said: “That’s not correct”.

“We're not joining any military alliance,” Mr Byrne said.

“The European Union is not a military alliance. It's an alliance of peace, an alliance of economics for prosperity for people."

Mr Byrne said the Government wants to ensure that Irish Defence Forces members can continue to serve in overseas peacekeeping missions without the approval of the UN Security Council.