LAST UPDATE | 26 Jun 2023
THE TAOISEACH HAS said there will not be a referendum on NATO membership and said the State is not joining the alliance.
Dozens of peace protestors staged a demonstration outside the consultative forum on Ireland’s international security policy.
Demonstrators had lined the footpath on Dame Street holding anti-NATO signs and chanting outside the castle, where Taoiseach Leo Varadkar spoke this morning.
Varadkar said at the event that there is no plan to join NATO and also said that a referendum would not be held on the issue of not joining.
The forum convened in University College Cork last week, where protesters heckled speakers including Tánaiste and Minister for Defence Micheál Martin.
Protesters also disrupted proceedings at the University of Galway, where the forum was also held.
Martin has previously said that said the forum will be an “open, informed, respectful and evidence-based discussion” on Ireland’s foreign policy.
But the Irish Anti-War Movement (IAWM), which is organising the protest, has accused the government of stacking the forum with proponents of Ireland abandoning military neutrality.
Protest outside the security policy forum at the gate of Dublin Castle this morning pic.twitter.com/RAqF1ssFz5
— Nicky Ryan (@NickyRyan_) June 26, 2023
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, speaking to reporters at the event, sought to reassure the public that there is no plan to join NATO – and said there is also no plan for a referendum.
“It’s not the intention of this government or any of the three parties that make up the government to join NATO. I had never heard the idea of having a referendum about not joining an organization.
“You have referendum because you’re going to join an organisation. We’ve decided to join the European Union as part of the Lisbon Treaty when people voted for this we joined Pesco, which is the European Common foreign security defence policy. And that’s that’s where we are.
“There isn’t a requirement to have a referendum to join NATO. I think if we were ever to contemplate that, we probably would have to have referendum,” he said.
Varadkar’s speech was interrupted after it began by a member of the crowd who took issue with the forum.
The opening events at the forum were also interrupted last Thursday and Friday.
Speaking outside Dublin Castle one protester, Eimhin de Piorraí told The Journal that he thinks the forum is a “stitch up” and a “one-sided debate”.
“Voices of dissent have been rejected. Where instead of a 50-50 debate, we’ve seen warmongers, people from NATO and those who have a vested interest in doing away with Irish neutrality.”
De Piorraí said that he believes the consultative forum is an attempt to “corral” the Irish public and disagrees with government’s defense of the event.
Last week, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar defended the Consultative Forum on International Security Policy and said the forum is not about whether Ireland should join NATO or any other military alliance, but a “deep dive” into the state’s security policy.
However, Martin Hogan, another protester outside Dublin Castle today, said that the forum is “totally opposed to the proud culture of resistance” that the country has and believes Ireland joining NATO would have “severe consequences”.
81-year-old Colm Roddy, an anti-war protester, said he was “alarmed” when he first heard of the forums.
Roddy said its “difficult” to determine whether or not the forum should take place as it is a “two-sided conversation” which highlights new threats such as cyber warfare and the on-going implications of the war in Ukraine.
However, he claimed the public has been “totally misled” on Ireland’s foreign policies and that the idea of the state joining NATO is “absurd”.
“There’s no logic to it in my mind,” Roddy added.
Varadkar’s speech was interrupted after it began by a member of the crowd who took issue with the forum.
In Cork, protesters disrupted Martin’s opening speech, shouting anti-NATO slogans and jeering and booing.
Martin, in an attempt to stop the disruption, said: “There’s no point, I want to get through my introductory speech and we can have consultations later.”
The Tánaiste continued with his speech – however more protesters joined, with some holding a banner reading: “NATO WARS, MILLIONS DEAD”.
The protesters claimed that the Tánaiste was “ignoring” them and continued to heckle with their criticisms of the forum.
The protesters were eventually removed from the lecture theatre by gardaí.
Day one of the forum in Cork saw discussions on European security against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the implications for Ireland. Emerging issues with cyber security were also discussed.
Protesters again disrupted proceedings in Galway, with well-known anti-war campaigner Margaretta D’Arcy, dressed in an NUIG gown, refusing to leave the stage until she could speak to the room.
Speaking to The Journal, 90-year-old D’Arcy said she believed that the Consultative Forum on International Security was a “stitch up”.
“I want to ask Micheál Martin why he has not given us our citizen assembly because the President (Michael D Higgins) said it himself – this is not a democratic assembly, it is hand-picked and is about where the Government thinks we should go.”
Day two was focused on the nature of the Triple Lock, a system whereby Ireland must have cabinet and Dáil approval and a UN mandate before deploying troops.
The panels dealt with Ireland’s diplomatic work at the UN, peace keeping and Irish research an innovation in security and defence.
The opening events at the forum were also interrupted last Thursday and Friday.
With reporting from Emer Moreau, Muiris O’Cearbhaill and Mia Douglas
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