Tanaiste welcomes decision to allow Irish peacekeepers to stay in Lebanon until 2027

The Tanaiste has welcomed a decision to allow Irish peacekeepers to remain in Lebanon until 2027.

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) this evening voted to extend the mandate of Unifil peacekeepers until the end of 2026 and to start an orderly and safe withdrawal within one year.

Simon Harris earlier said it would have been an “extraordinarily dangerous situation” to have an abrupt ending to the mission, adding that it would have been “wholly irresponsible”.

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.

In a statement, Mr Harris said: “The Defence Forces have participated proudly in this mission for over 40 years and contributed significantly to stabilising the region during that time.

“I have long argued that the presence of Unifil in southern Lebanon is vital to maintaining peace and security, and providing support to the Lebanese government and the region more broadly. The situation on the ground is stable but fragile, as I saw for myself when I visited Lebanon earlier in the year.

“We have been engaging with European partners over the last number of months as behind-the-scenes discussions on the renewal progressed.

“I particularly want to acknowledge the efforts of France who, as penholders, led the negotiations on the Unifil resolution at the UN Security Council, during what was an often challenging process. Like Ireland, France also advocated strongly for mandate renewal.”

Speaking earlier, Mr Harris said: “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.”

“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.”