Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
THE GOVERNMENT HAS cleared the way for 30 Irish troops who are instructors in battlefield medics, bomb disposal and engineering to help train Ukrainian soldiers as part of an EU mission.
The cabinet confirmed the move this morning and will see the troops deployed in the coming months to the newly established European Union Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine (EUMAM Ukraine).
The Tánaiste and Minister for Defence and Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin TD welcomed the move.
“EUMAM Ukraine will provide vital training support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as the coordination of EU Member States’ activities delivering the training.
“Given Ireland’s steadfast support for Ukraine and the considerable experience our Defence Forces have in providing training both at home and overseas, the Government regards the participation of the Defence Forces in this mission as an important signal of Ireland’s unwavering support for and solidarity with Ukraine,” he said.
A source has confirmed that it is anticipated that the focus of the Irish participation will be on medics, de-mining methods and engineering capabilities.
A statement from the Department of Defence said that the primary role of the Defence Forces will be to provide training to members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) in one or more European countries where the training will take place.
These trainers will be supplemented by a small number of staff positions based in the Military Planning and Conduct Capability (MPCC) staff based in Brussels, Belgium and in the multi-national Special Training Command (STC) in Strausberg, Germany.
Advertisement
The mission was planned after the Council of the EU launched the EUMAM Ukraine last year.
The DOD said that the aim of the operation is to “enhance the military capability of the Ukrainian Armed Forces” to allow them to continue to defend their country and protect the civilian population.
“The mission is already up and running, and operates on a needs-based approach, answering to Ukrainian training needs.
“EUMAM Ukraine has a mandate to provide individual, collective and specialised training to up to 15,000 Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel over multiple locations in the territory of EU member states, subject to the explicit consent of each host Member State,” a statement said.
Ireland currently has a senior staff position in the mission’s Operational Headquarters, which will operate within the EU’s Military Planning and Conduct Capability (MPCC) staff in Brussels, as part of the EU Military Staff.
Ireland will offer training teams to augment training delivered by other EU nations, and staff in Brussels and Strausberg, Germany will co-ordinate delivery of training on a multi-national basis.
The plan is that Defence Forces’ personnel will deploy to deliver the training as soon as the Irish soldier’s capabilities match the needs of the Ukrainian forces.
The supply of equipment, both lethal and non-lethal, which is provided by Member States is funded by the European Peace Facility (EPF).
Ireland’s funding contribution to the EPF is directed exclusively to non-lethal elements, consistent with the terms of the Programme for Government.
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
31 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
@Brian Boru:
Perfect analysis. Step by military step moving into NATO and/or EU army ~ always, of course, in the name of ‘peace’ or ‘humanitarian intervention’.
@Brian Boru: we are only neutral because someone sometime said we were. We depend on the RAF to protect our western border and should we have any emergencies. Neutral nations should be able to defend themselves ala Sweden, Finland, Austria, Japan and Switzerland. And neutrality is not in our Constitution.
Whether you like it or not…the Russian Ambassador Filatov was spot on….Irelands neutrality is ambiguous.
And we need to keep helping Ukraine, which country is next if we don’t.
@Paul Furey: There is no requirement for a neutral or any other country to be “able to defend itself”. The world would be a much better place if money was spent on reducing poverty and living in harmony with the environment rather than on more and more lethal means of people killing each other.
@John Mcmahon: What’s wrong exactly? Our guys are meeting up with them in Europe and training some medics, anti mining training etc. What part of that is wrong?
Our “leaders” are just putting themselves in line for one of the many cushy jobs that these international military organisations have to offer as they face into being consigned to the political dustbin at the next election.
@Jim O’Sullivan:
The Irish Times, the Journal, RTE, Independent and many more are pushing for us to join NATO.
Some points that should be kept in mind.
NATO membership requires us to spend a minimum of 2% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence. Money that will not be spent in this country, as the biggest arms manufacturers are mostly in the US, with the UK and France getting some of the action. No wonder they love the war! Of course a percentage of the vast amounts involved will have to be shared with the locals, as is customary around the world.
NATO membership also requires us to host NATO (i.e.US) bases in Ireland, over which we will have absolutely no control. We won’t know what missiles are there, nuclear or not, and of course will be required to join any of the wars decided upon by the US.
NATO (i.e. US) military personnel who commit crimes in Ireland outside the bases will not be handed over to the Irish authorities for trial but will be tried by US military courts. We all know how that works out.
Irish sovereignty will have disappeared.
@Cullen Cullen: Hey….I think it’s funny. Irish humour. And if some of our precious (suddenly and always ready to be offended) fellow Irish people do not get it…. their hangup.
As a neutral nation we should not be sending any troops to Ukraine.This government is hell bent on undermining our long established and well respected neutral status.
@Pat Man: I doubt very much they will be sent to Ukraine itself. It says “They will travel to Europe to train Ukrainian troops”. Meaning they will be sent to Germany or Poland I guess to train them. A big difference than Irish boots on Ukrainian soil to train them.
@Pat Man: As a neutral nation we are not sending troops to Ukraine. Feel free to withdraw your comment and consider reading past the headline before quickly scrolling down to have a moan about the government. The training takes place in a few locations in the EU, and for Irelands part, our instructors will be medics focusing on that area as well as disarming mines etc.
Brilliant experience for the troops….many serving members will only be delighted to go and help…. stop confusing the politics and policies of the government with what professional soldiers actually want to do with the skills they have learned….they will be very happy to go teach and help with the training of Ukraine troops ….we have some of the best trained soldiers in Europe and can adapt to any situation
@Dave Ryan: this war can be fought without any Irish influence no matter how small, its none of our business, we’re a small Island on the edge of Europe with more problems than most, no proper Health Service, Billions in debt, housing crisis, no Defence Force and we’ve taken in almost 90.000 Ukrainians who won’t go home because they have no home to go to, I’m no fan of Putin but this Zelenski lad takes the biscuit, even the Ukrainians are beginning to see tru him, he’s getting his people slaughtered, he got the Israeli PM to ask Putin if he was going to kill him and when Putin he wudnt he crawled out of his bunker and became GI Joe, he wanted NATO to Nuke Russian Nuclear positions so they cudnt use their Nukes, what kind of person thinks like that only a mad man.
@David Lydon: We’re already considered a target by Russia. You might not like it but the reality is that Ireland is politically, economically and culturally aligned with Europe and that is where our interests lie and Russia is an opposing nation. That’s just the reality of the situation. We can either have a seat at the table and help shape policy or stay out in the cold and watch policy, which directly affects us, be shaped by others.
Irish charity shops seeing 'massive influx' of Shein clothes - often never worn
19 mins ago
431
1
PSNI
Man wanted in Germany to stand trial for child sex offences arrested in Portadown
2 hrs ago
4.6k
Cavan
Woman killed in Cavan home named locally, as gardaí launch murder investigation
Updated
15 hrs ago
88.9k
Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work.
We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).
We and our 138 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting Accept All enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Cookie Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage .Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy.
We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
We process your data to deliver content or advertisements and measure the delivery of such content or advertisements to extract insights about our website. We share this information with our partners on the basis of consent. You may exercise your right to consent, based on a specific purpose below or at a partner level in the link under each purpose. Some vendors may process your data based on their legitimate interests, which does not require your consent. You cannot object to tracking technologies placed to ensure security, prevent fraud, fix errors, or deliver and present advertising and content, and precise geolocation data and active scanning of device characteristics for identification may be used to support this purpose. This exception does not apply to targeted advertising. These choices will be signaled to our vendors participating in the Transparency and Consent Framework.
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 95 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 123 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 93 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 68 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 67 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 32 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 28 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 115 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 56 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 67 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 74 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 33 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 39 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 23 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 77 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 87 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 64 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 46 partners can use this feature
Always Active
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 75 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 54 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say