Tomás Ó Flatharta

Hanna Perekhoda’s article highlights uncomfortable truths about European Defence. The new Trump-Putin reactionary alliance against Ukraine has brought matters to a head.

Perekhoda states “The real question now, particularly for the left, is whether it has a concrete program to address this crisis.”

Link : How to finance European defence (and how not to)

Ireland will not escape the consequences.

Do the best parts of the left in Ireland pass this Perekhoda test?

We must start by examining a misnamed policy : supporting Irish “Neutrality”. Language matters, as we shall see. This is a key part of the problem.

The best of the Irish left declares itself in favour of “Neutrality” – but in the conflict between Israel and Palestine it supports Palestine.

The best of the left should not support a policy of “Neutrality” in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. It should support Ukraine.

The best of the left correctly opposes Irish state membership of military alliances such as NATO, but that is not a policy of “neutrality”. The policy is more accurately described as “non-alignment”. That, for the sake of clarity, was the policy of Tito’s Yugoslavia after his country’s progressive breakaway from the Warsaw Pact.

Does this matter in practice? The answer is Yes.

When the Irish government militarily assists the state of Ukraine by providing mine-clearing equipment, it is helping to defend the hospitals, schools and housing of people living in Ukraine. It is preventing Ukraine from becoming a new defenceless Gaza.