If you've been following the news in the Republic over the past week, you could be forgiven

for thinking there's only one story in town, the secret payments made by RTE to its star

presenter Ryan Tuberty over the years. But there is another significant, contentious issue

that's been the subject of much debate as well, and that's the extent to which Ireland's

long-standing policy of neutrality remains fit for purpose in an ever-changing global landscape.

The Government's Consultative Forum on International Security Policy has been grappling with the issue,

and we thought we'd devote this week's red lines to airing the debate around the subject.

And we've assembled an expert cast to do that.

John O'Brennan is Professor of European Politics

at Maynooth University, Dr Karen Devine lectures in international relations at Dublin City

University and Daniel McConnell is the editor of the Business Post. Welcome to Red Lines. Thank you

for making time for us today. Daniel McConnell, first of all, just to frame this

conversation for us, where are we with this debate? And why has the government decided that now is

the time to consider this issue in such a focused and formal way? Yeah, sure. So there's been a

conflation of issues, Mark, that have, I suppose, come together in recent times. One, I suppose, has been a crisis in our own defence forces, which has kind of developed over the last 10 years or so, you know, a shortage of numbers and personnel. We've obviously known that Ireland has been very exposed in terms of its own capability of, you know, protecting our own seas and our own skies.

And that has also been brought into focus given the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Russian war games off the south coast of Ireland in the run-up to that invasion.

But also as well, I think in a post-Brexit environment as well, there are many in Ireland who are looking at our strategic alliances with our main and primary neighbour no longer at the table in Europe.

And this is sort of sparked a debate as to whether Arden should look towards NATO and other military alliances or other strategic alliances.

And I think it was in that context, in addition, I suppose, to increased unhappiness with our triple lock mechanism.

And this is the kind of the construct that the Irish state has in terms of deploying troops to peacekeeping missions abroad.

And it would require a move by the UN Security Council,

a resolution from the UN Security Council, a government decision and also to all approval.

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