Abstract
The Republic of Ireland has followed a policy of neutrality (styled “military neutrality since the 1980s) since it declined to participate in negotiations in 1948 that led to the establishment of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Ireland’s understanding of neutrality in the Second World War and in the late 1940s was largely an expression of national identity and independence. When Ireland ratified its accession treaty in 1972, any potential tension in the future between the demands of European Community integration were seen as a long way off. Ireland has retained its neutrality policy since accession to the then EEC in 1973, but Ireland has gradually agreed to increasing cooperation, first in security and later in military matters. The political elite at every referendum on a new EU treaty would proclaim that nothing in the text threatens neutrality, but the reality was more complex, and the policy today equates to non-membership in any military alliance with a defense clause (namely NATO.) This paper focuses on current (2024-2025) pressures on Ireland’s military neutrality policy, primarily the proposed change to the “Triple Lock” to drop the need for a UN Security Council resolution before the deployment of Irish troops on an EU sponsored military mission.
Presenters
Daniel SweeneyAssistant Professor, Department of History and International Studies, University of Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
KEYWORDS
CSDP, EU BATTLEGROUPS, SECURITY COUNCIL, NEUTRALITY, EUROPEAN COMMISSION
