The Irish people oppose ending the Triple Lock and want to stay neutral, Sinn Féin has claimed. 

Last week, Taoiseach Micheál Martin met President Zelenskyy at Shannon Airport and said Ireland was “open” to the idea of sending troops to Ukraine as part of a peacekeeping mission. 

Under the Triple Lock, any deployment of Irish troops requires support from the Government, Dáil Éireann and the Security Council of the United Nations. 

Soldiers at Camp Shamrock in Lebanon. Picture by: PA Images / Alamy

As Russia is a permanent member of the Security Council, it can veto any UN peacekeeping mission and the expectation is it would do so again if the UN proposed the deployment of western troops to Ukraine. 

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael promised to “reform” the Triple Lock in the Programme for Government; however, Sinn Féin believe the status quo serves Ireland well. 

“It’s a simplistic idea that a peacekeeping mission comes to the Security Council and the Security Council just automatically can veto it,” MEP Lynn Boylan told Newstalk Breakfast. 

“Before that ever happens, there is a huge amount of preparatory work that goes on - including technical field assessments carried out by the United Nations. 

“They look at the overall security, the political situation, the humanitarian situation, the human rights situation on the ground. 

“The Government has not said how they are going to replace this crucial step.” 

Ms Boylan added that the United States and European Union are distrusted by many countries around the world. 

However, she believes that neutrality means Ireland is still seen as an “honest broker” by many countries, “particularly in the Global South”. 

“The Irish people repeatedly say they want Ireland’s neutrality to be respected,” she said. 

“They have been given the guarantees; the Triple Lock was part of the Lisbon Treaty - it was put into the Lisbon Treaty to reassure the Irish people that your neutrality was not being damaged.

“In every single poll… the people of Ireland really want to protect their neutrality.” 

Soldiers of the Irish Army on the Curragh Plains in County Kildare. Picture by: Eamonn Farrell/RollingNews.ie

Minister for International Development and Diaspora Neale Richmond said the Triple Lock is “no longer fit for purpose” and that changing it had been “flagged” in Fine Gael’s manifesto. 

“We don’t govern by opinion polls, we govern by democratic mandates,” he said. 

“We made it quite clear in the election manifesto and in the Programme for Government. 

“Lynn has just thrown in a load of distraction there; the Triple Lock isn’t enshrined in the Lisbon Treaty - there is a reference to Irish neutrality.”

Soldiers training on a snow covered Curragh Plains. Picture by: Eamonn Farrell / RollingNews.ie

He added that Russia’s role on the Security Council has prevented Ireland deploying troops on a number of worthwhile overseas missions. 

“We just don’t think that’s fit for purpose,” he said. 

“It prevents us from engaging in other EU-led peacekeeping missions.

“I think it’s about time we trust not only the democratically elected Government, but also the Dáil to take the decision to send our troops to participate in peacekeeping forces.” 

Draft legislation to change the Triple Lock will be brought before Cabinet tomorrow.

Main image: Irish Defence Forces. Picture by: Alamy.com