Irish participation in a new EU defence programme will help deter aggressors from using the State as a “back door to attack friends and neighbours”, a security expert has predicted. 

Tánaiste Simon Harris is due to announce Ireland will sign up to Brussels’ Security Action for Europe (SAFE) that is designed to streamline the procurement of defence equipment for member states. 

Polish Minister for Europe Adam Szłapka described it as an “unprecedented instrument which will boost our defence capabilities and support our defence industry.” 

On The Pat Kenny Show, security expert Declan Power said procurement of defence equipment is one policy area which the Irish Government has long been “very poor at”. 

“We have not always cut very good deals because we don’t have much experience in procuring defence equipment,” he explained. 

“We can often get carried away by the price and get equipment that doesn’t have the longevity required or doesn’t suit our actual needs.” 

Irish Defence Forces arm patch of a soldier in the Irish Army. Image: Andy Gibson / Alamy. 19 October 2016

Mr Power continued that participation in SAFE will allow the Department of Defence “to piggyback” onto other countries’ purchases, noting officials will likely purchase sonar to monitor the seas around the State. 

“A small country like ours, when we have a defence shopping list, we’re not really at the top of the list when we go to the different manufacturers,” he said. 

“Because they have bigger customers and they’re going to deal with them - the bigger the number, the bigger the amount of money.

“So, this is good for us on many levels.” 

He added that he does not believe that Ireland’s involvement in SAFE would undermine the State’s neutrality. 

“We’re allowed to take part in this but we’re not being bound into anything,” he said. 

“It doesn’t change our foreign policy stance, it doesn’t change our military alignments - of lack thereof. 

“It doesn’t bind us into any commitments and it’s important that people understand that.” 

A NATO flag in Lithuania. Image: dpa picture alliance / Alamy

In Budget 2025, the Department of Defence was allocated a record €1.35 billion. 

The figure is expected to rise further in the coming years and Mr Power said increased spending is “all about deterrence”.  

“If you have a good deterrence, you’re generally left alone - the weakest kid in the playground is the one who gets picked on,” he said. 

“You don’t have to be the biggest kid in the playground to sail into the greyzone. 

“What we are in a state of at the moment is provocative weakness - that’s why Russian ships sail into our territory and why they [come into] our airspace. 

“They know that we can be used as a weak link into Europe in general - we don’t want that.

“We don’t want to get involved in war fighting, but we don’t want to be the cause of somebody who is interested in war fighting using us as a back door to attack friends and neighbours.” 

People Before Profit has condemned the Government’s defence policy as an “attack on neutrality”, warning that the European Union is “preparing for war”.

Main image: An Irish Defence Forces arm patch of a soldier. Picture by: Alamy.com.