Ireland has long been a free rider in security and defense. Officially neutral and spending an infinitesimal 0.22 percent of GDP on its military in 2025, the country is literally defenseless. With only four naval vessels available on a rotational basis, patrol ships that lack technicians to operate weapons, and zero fighter jets, Ireland is incapable of protecting itself, its waters, and the undersea infrastructure that surrounds the island and on which trans-Atlantic communications depend. Even today—in an era of heightened geopolitical threats—Dublin remains devoid of any coherent long-term security strategy.

Dublin has an immediate security problem to deal with: Embarrassed by its inability to deal with a drone incursion during a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last December, Ireland is desperate to avoid similar incidents when it assumes the rotating presidency of the European Council—the intergovernmental body that is the true locus of power behind the European Union—with its summits and ministerial meetings, next month. Since it has little hope of handling security on its own, Dublin recently announced that it was seeking to engage the French Navy to provide temporary air defense during important European Council meetings.