A former Fine Gael policy adviser and senior figure at the official think tank of the party’s EU affiliate has warned that Ireland is becoming a French “military protectorate”, citing defence procurement agreements, intelligence-sharing arrangements and the deployment of French drones to help police Dublin’s upcoming EU Council Presidency.
Dr Eoin Drea, a senior researcher at the Martens Centre, which is affiliated with the European People’s Party grouping to which Fine Gael belongs, made the remarks in this month’s issue of Foreign Policy magazine. Drea argued that the Irish state and Defence Forces are increasingly outsourcing elements of its sovereignty to France through its growing reliance on Paris for military hardware, training, procurement and security support stemming from Dublin’s lack of defensive preparedness
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