Instead of wasting money, let’s draw up a defence plan Ireland needs and can deliver

Sir, – Let’s not repeat the mistake of throwing money at the wrong answer to the wrong question. The reported proposal to acquire more than 550 French armoured vehicles raises fundamental questions about Ireland’s defence priorities.

The question should not be how many armoured vehicles Ireland needs to create a mechanised brigade. It should be what capabilities Ireland can realistically develop, operate and sustain that would both best protect our national interests and make a meaningful contribution to European security.

The Comptroller and Auditor General’s examination of the Defence Forces’ light tactical armoured vehicle programme provides a sobering warning. Twenty-seven vehicles, acquired for approximately €20 million, were withdrawn from active service well before their expected service lives. The difficulties surrounding the acquisition and commissioning of two former New Zealand naval patrol vessels offer further grounds for caution.

These experiences are not a criticism of Defence Forces personnel. They raise serious questions about the State’s capacity to procure, maintain and sustain sophisticated military equipment. The financial implications are potentially enormous. Belgium’s court of audit has identified lifetime costs of at least €14.7 billion for its programme involving 442 French armoured vehicles, compared with an originally announced agreement of approximately €1.6 billion.

Applying that Belgian experience proportionately to a proposed Irish fleet of 550 vehicles suggests a potential lifetime expenditure of about €18 billion. As others have argued, the underlying problem is institutional: weaknesses in technical structures, sustainment arrangements, independent certification and transparent whole-life accounting. Simply buying different equipment will not resolve those deficiencies.

Ireland is an Atlantic island with extensive maritime approaches, strategically important subsea communications infrastructure and a substantial technology sector.

Europe faces growing challenges in maritime surveillance, critical infrastructure protection, cyber defence and secure communications. A specialist Irish capability in maritime and subsea surveillance, autonomous systems, airborne intelligence and deployable electronic and cyber systems could address our own vulnerabilities while providing valuable support to European operations.

We could complement this with sovereign European data infrastructure in Ireland, supported by additional domestic renewable energy generation, strengthening resilience and creating opportunities for the Irish technology sector.

Before committing billions over the lifetime of such equipment, the Government should commission an independent and expert assessment of the operational requirements, institutional capacity, whole-life costs and strategic value of credible alternatives.

Let’s establish what Ireland and its European partners actually need, what we are uniquely positioned to deliver and whether we can sustain it. – Yours, etc,

PAUL RYAN,

Cork.