Just hours before European Commission president Ursula Von der Leyen delivered her State of the Union address to the European Parliament, Russian drones deliberately infiltrated Polish airspace. With the backing of their Dutch, Belgian and Italian Nato allies, the Polish air force successfully defended the airspace of the EU.

In the view of Polish prime minister Donald Tusk, it was closest that his country had come to open conflict since the Second World War.

It’s no wonder the Commission president’s speech focused so heavily on accelerating the EU’s ability to defend and monitor its borders.

The development of an ‘Eastern Flank Watch’ will provide countries bordering Russia with ‘real-time space surveillance’ while a defensive ‘drone wall’ will stretch from the Baltic to the Black Sea.
Coming as it did on top of the recent surge in European military spending, Ms von der Leyen’s speech marked another step forward in the strengthening of the EU’s role in driving the rearmament of its member states.

For Ireland, the incursion into Poland should serve as a stark reminder that war is not some faraway fantasy, but a real threat to our fellow EU members and friends. It should also concentrate minds in Dublin on how geographical distance is no longer a sufficient buffer against external threats.

In an era when cyber warfare, missile technology and hybrid warfare tactics can transcend borders with ease, Ireland’s lack of a credible defence deterrent leaves us perilously exposed.

The reality is that defenceless neutrality is not a viable strategy for safeguarding the sovereignty Irish policymakers love to invoke. Nor is it appropriate when our fellow EU members are directly threatened by hostile actors.

Will Ireland idle our time away in our ivory tower if Warsaw, Vilnius or Helsinki come under direct attack?
In this context, Ireland’s Triple Lock mechanism for deploying Irish forces overseas is regarded with astonishment by the rest of the EU, particularly in central and eastern Europe.

Allowing the deployment of Irish troops overseas to be dictated to us by Russia or China (due to their permanent membership of the UN security council) has made Ireland a laughing stock among the international security community.

Let’s be honest: Ireland clinging to the Triple Lock is not just a dishonourable political approach. It’s deliberately hiding behind our self-proclaimed position as Europe’s greatest humanitarians.

But this deck of cards has already collapsed – along with Ireland’s credibility on security and defence. Because Ireland’s continuing refusal to take defence seriously also reflects a terrible strategic naivety. This is a simpleton’s approach to security born of decades of using neutrality as a crutch to make us feel better about ourselves.

The attack on Poland is not an isolated incident but part of a broader strategy by Russia to destabilise Europe and challenge the democratic basis of the EU.

Ireland has a vested interest in maintaining stability on the continent. A credible defence policy is not only essential for safeguarding Ireland’s sovereignty but also for contributing to the collective security of Europe.

The seemingly endless debates about the removal of Ireland’s Triple Lock mechanism show just how far out of touch Ireland is from current European debates about defence.

To be taken seriously in Brussels – and to be seen as a reliable ally by our fellow EU members in central and eastern Europe – abolishing the Triple Lock is now an urgent requirement.
Critical to this is tackling Ireland’s chronic under-investment in our own security. Why would any external actors want to take us seriously if we’re not even credible to ourselves?

The Defence Forces, while highly professional and dedicated, are woefully underfunded and under-equipped. They have been set up to fail.

The examples of successive governments’ neglect are everywhere to be seen – naval ships lacking personnel to patrol, an inability to track or intercept unknown aircraft in Irish airspace, no underwater capabilities to protect vital underwater cables in Irish waters.

It is imperative that Ireland invests in modernising its defence infrastructure, enhancing its cyber capabilities, and ensuring that its military personnel have access to the best training and equipment available. And let’s be clear about this – while Irish policymakers will hide behind the Commission on the Defence Forces Report that was published in 2022 – the reality is that Ireland remains nowhere near to establishing a credible level of security preparedness.

Critics may argue that increasing defence spending and adopting a more proactive stance on national security contradicts Ireland’s commitment to neutrality. However, neutrality should not equate to vulnerability. A credible defence policy is not about abandoning neutrality, but about ensuring that Ireland can defend itself if the need arises.

Equally important is that we have a responsibility to uphold and protect the basic democratic values that underpin our membership of the EU.
We can no longer sit idly by while the very values we subscribe to are being violated within the EU’s borders.

Neutrality does not mean sitting silently while the principles which are supposed to be fundamental to us are casually disregarded in other parts of Europe.

Removing the Triple Lock is just the first step in Ireland meeting the uncertain realities of today. That’s the very minimum that we owe to our European friends and neighbours.

*Published by The Irish Mail on Sunday on 14 September 2025