The election of Catherine Connolly as Ireland’s President will raise concerns in Europe about a shift in Ireland towards isolationism that stands at odds with the EU’s commitment to rapidly increase collective defence spending and defence cooperation. Connolly, like outgoing President Micheal D Higgins, is a champion of Irish neutrality. It is difficult to say whether the surge in support for the left-wing president-elect Connolly is a one-off or indicative of a more decisive shift in Irish politics towards opposition parties like Sinn Féin, which adroitly backed the independent Connolly early in her campaign. But Brussels and the UK, with whom Ireland shares a Common Travel Area, should accelerate planning for what a Sinn Féin-led government within the next five years would mean for the EU and British-Irish security and defence cooperation. Both outgoing President Higgins and president-elect Connolly, who will take office as Ireland’s tenth president on 11 November, have shown a consistent dislike of increased defence spending beyond equipping lightly armed peacekeepers for service with the UN. During a parliamentary debate last year, Connolly observed that, ‘Ireland will never be able to have an army. We do not need an army.’ She now finds herself as commander of chief of the Irish Defence Forces, including the Air Corps, the Naval Service and, as is its title, the Army.
A New President, Neutrality and an EU Presidency: Ireland’s Defence Dilemma (Edward Burke – RUSI)
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