Tánaiste welcomes move to allow Irish peacekeepers to stay in Lebanon until 2027

By Cate McCurry, PA

The Tánaiste has welcomed a move to allow Irish peacekeepers to remain in Lebanon until 2027, saying it would have been an “extraordinarily dangerous situation” to have an abrupt ending to the mission.

Simon Harris said the idea of having peacekeepers leaving soon would have been “wholly irresponsible”.

The draft French resolution, which is set to be approved by the Security Council on Thursday, will see the United National Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) mission renewed until the end of 2026.

It will be followed by a year-long safe withdrawal of UN peacekeepers and the duties will be handed over to the Lebanese Armed Forces.

Ireland has around 350 peacekeepers posted in Lebanon.

The United States and Israel wanted to have UN troops removed from the area next year, however following negotiations, it was agreed to have it extended beyond 2026.

Speaking on Thursday, Mr Harris said: “To be very honest, it’s it’s one of mixed emotion because only months ago, there was a very significant chance, perhaps only weeks ago, that there was going to be an immediate end, that the mandate would not be renewed, that it would not get through the Security Council.

“My immediate concern as Minister for Defence then was what that would mean for the security of our own troops, for the security of the peacekeepers in general, and for security in the region.

“We have a very, very long and proud association with the Unifil mission and today, I want to pay tribute to the thousands upon thousands of Irish men and women who have served Oglaigh na hEireann and Unifil with absolute distinction.

“I particularly think today of the 47 members who paid the ultimate sacrifice, who lost their lives in the cause of peace, and I think of them and their families today with a great sense of gratitude for their proud service.”

He told RTÉ Radio 1: “I don’t want speak for the United States of America, far from it, but I think they’ve outlined their views on a number of occasions, including what seems to be a cost containment view that they take to the United Nations and its work in general.

“However, I must say we did have constructive engagement with the US, and I think we saw the benefit of countries working together, of France, of Austria, of Ireland, of Italy, of Lebanon itself, and indeed, of Unifil officials.

“We said to our American counterparts, yes, you have a perspective, but it would be an extraordinarily dangerous situation to have an abrupt end, an abrupt cliff edge to a peacekeeping mission in a very volatile part of the world.

“We must remember there’s a relatively new Lebanese government in place, that’s a government that is extremely serious about disarming Hezbollah, is extremely serious about trying to give the people of Lebanon a new start.

“The idea that we, the international community, the peacekeepers of the world would walk away at this moment, would have been wholly, wholly irresponsible.

“The diplomatic campaign, I think, has gotten us to a much improved situation.

“And if they say a week is a long time in politics, trying to predict with certainty where we’ll be by the middle or end of 2027 is a very, very challenging thing to do.”