Ireland is buying defence capability, without confronting what that actually requires

What Ireland cannot do is claim to possess a military force while organising, training, and governing it as though it will never be used. Ireland is not struggling to buy defence equipment. It is struggling to absorb it

The 58th Unifil Battalion at Dublin Airport returning from a tour of duty in the Lebanon in May 1986. Picture: Independent News and Media/Getty Images

Ireland is now exporting its distinctive military culture into the European defence conversation. In a recent interview, General Seán Clancy spoke eloquently about preparedness, resilience, consensus, and urgency — themes that sit comfortably within Ireland’s long-standing approach to security. 

What went largely unremarked, however, were the elements that distinguish defence from reassurance: coercive decision-making, unified command under pressure, lethality, and survivability.