ieExplains: What is the triple lock and why is it so important?
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The triple lock is used to describe the three steps — or safety locks — that Ireland must go through before more than 12 members of the Defence Forces are sent abroad on missions, such as peacekeeping exercises.
The first step is Government sign-off, which is usually done at a Cabinet meeting. The Dáil must then approve the deployment of our Defence Forces abroad. This step involves TDs debating and ultimately voting on whether troops should be sent on the mission in question.
The third lock is the mandate or authorisation that must be obtained from the UN Security Council.
Those in favour of scrapping the triple lock say the system gives significant power to a small number of States that sit on the UN Security Council.
Announcing his plans to remove the triple lock, Defence Minister Micheál Martin said: "In effect, this triple lock system hands the five permanent members of the Security Council a veto over our national sovereign decision to deploy troops to peacekeeping missions as we see fit."
The council is composed of 15 members. This includes five permanent members: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
There are 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms by the General Assembly. Ireland served on the UN Security Council for the 2021-2022 term.
The Government has become increasingly concerned about the "systemic challenges" facing the UN Security Council and has pointed to the fact that no new peacekeeping missions have been authorised by the Security Council since 2014.
A perceived lack of action on conflicts around the world, including Israel's bombardment of Gaza has also been cited as a concern.
"Look at Ukraine — for reasons that we all know, the council has not even issued a statement on the issue, never mind agreed on a resolution," Mr Martin told the Dáil on Wednesday.
Arguing in favour of scrapping the triple lock, Mr Martin said it would "make sense, I believe, to amend our existing legislation in a manner which would allow us to respond to crisis situations with more agility, and where in making these important decisions, we are not surrendering our sovereignty".
He added this would allow us to dispatch Defence Forces personnel to multilateral missions overseas where these are organised by a regional organisation such as the European Union or African Union, or where the host country is requesting such support from the international community.
Those against the move say removing the triple lock would mean any Irish Government could send troops abroad, which would have implications on our neutrality.
The move has been described as a "fundamental shift" in Irish foreign policy by Sinn Féin's Matt Carthy, who said it would undermine our neutrality.
He added the Government had not answered the question as to "what it will do for our neutrality and for our credibility if we are to send Irish troops to engage in missions that do not have a UN mandate".
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy also slammed the move as a “naked attempt to further erode Irish military neutrality”.