Brig Gen Rossa Mulcahy is expected to be named as the new head of the Defence Forces, where he will be overseeing the largest expansion of the military in its history.
Gen Mulcahy, who has more than three decades' experience including three peacekeeping deployments to Lebanon and a deployment to Afghanistan with Nato, is set to succeed Lieut Gen Seán Clancy as the State’s most senior military officer.
Tánaiste and Minister for Defence Simon Harris is expected to bring Gen Mulcahy’s name to Cabinet as early as Tuesday, The Irish Times has learned.
The appointment comes at a key time for the Defence Forces. Unlike his predecessors, the general will be granted full command and control of all military formations, under plans being drawn up by the Government.
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Under the current system, the chain of command extends from the Minister to the senior officers commanding individual formations, entirely bypassing the chief of staff and his deputies in headquarters.
To reflect these changes, plans are also under way to rework the role of the chief of staff into the chief of defence (Chod), in line with international practice.
This will grant Gen Mulcahy more powers and responsibilities than any of his predecessors in the 100-year history of the Defence Forces.
He will also be tasked overseeing a 50 per cent increase in defence spending by 2028 and a subsequent tripling of spending once that is achieved. This will include doubling the size of the Naval Service, acquiring combat jets for the Air Corps and dramatically increasing the size of the Army.
He will be the first Army officer to hold the role since 2015. Lieut Gen Clancy is an Air Corps officer and his predecessor, Vice Admiral Mark Mellett, was a Naval officer.
The competition for the new chief of staff was open to all ranks from colonel and above, an unusually large pool. However, only a handful of candidates were seriously considered, including Brig Gen Mulcahy, it is understood.
Mr Mulcahy, currently the assistant chief of staff – a role he has served in since 2021 – has more than 35 years' experience in a variety of roles across the Defence Forces.
He has also served as director of strategic planning and Defence Forces director of communications.
His overseas experience also includes two deployments as part of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO) in Lebanon and Syria as well as a deployment to Afghanistan as part of Ireland’s involvement in Nato’s former Resolute Support mission there.
Mr Mulcahy has third-level qualifications in commerce, information technology and leadership management and defence studies.
He is a graduate of the Defence Forces’ Senior Command and Staff Course (2008) and the US Army Command and General Staff College (2011).
[ Ireland has ‘a lot of catching up to do’ on defence spending, says Simon HarrisOpens in new window ]
The vacancy in the chief-of-staff job will come when Mr Clancy takes up a new role as the next chair of the European Union Military Committee (EUMC) – the highest military body within the union – later this year.
It is a three-year, full-time role and is the first time that the committee will have an Irish chair.
The EUMC is the forum for military consultation and co-operation between the EU member states in the field of conflict prevention and crisis management.
It directs all military activities within the EU framework, in particular the planning and execution of military missions and operations under the Common Security and Defence Policy and the development of military capabilities.
Based on consensus, it provides military direction to the European Union Military Staff. The chair of the EUMC acts as the spokesperson for the committee, giving voice to military expertise embodied in the committee.
