Readers' blog: Defence Forces are Ireland’s gift to the world

As a nation we box above our weight. This is a phrase we often use here at home. And it is true, be it on the sports field, in music, in film, and the arts in general. Our small nation, with its big heart, rises to the great occasions and shines.

But nowhere is this more true — and arguably with greater consequence and gravity for us all — than in the troubled lands and frontiers upon which the men and women of our own Defence Forces stand guard. Holding the line for peace, holding the line for stability, holding the line that ordinary people can live normal lives in dignity. De-escalating the conflicts, providing the space for peace, allowing the context for cooler heads to prevail, that honourable settlements and common-sense compromises may be reached, that will allow the peoples of the mission areas a taste of the liberties we enjoy everyday and take for granted here in Ireland and the European Union.