Sir, – Paul Williams (July 18th) accuses the Peace & Neutrality Alliance (Pana) of the usual anti-Americanism and "cowardice" because we would not support an EU state such as Britain or France if they were attacked, for the simple historical reason that these states have a long tradition of attacking other countries (including our own, in the case of the UK), a tradition which they clearly still support. We are no more cowards than are those with a record of supporting imperialist wars.
Finally, let me deal with the boring old canard that Pana is “anti-American”. Pana opposed the US war on Iraq, as did a then relatively obscure US senator called Barack Obama. Was he “anti-American” as well?
The Irish government under Bertie Ahern backed the Iraq war and destroyed the policy of Irish neutrality by turning Shannon Airport into a de facto US air force base. The point of the Irish Neutrality Bill, supported by Pana since our foundation in 1996, was that it would have allowed Irish people to restore the policy of neutrality, if they so desired, by way of a constitutional referendum. It was defeated by Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Labour Party.
We would contend that by opposing the war we were, in fact, pro-American, as many Americans now agree it was not a good idea, and I would suggest to Mr Williams that there is a good deal of evidence that we were correct. We also welcomed the end of sanctions on Cuba and Iran and the Minsk Accords, supported by the EU and the US, which according to Mr Williams should make us pro-EU and pro-US.
Wars are always more complex than Mr Williams suggest and Pana believes the words of our longest-serving taoiseach, Eamon de Valera, remain as valid now as they were in 1955: “A small nation has to be extremely cautious when it enters into alliances which bring it, willy nilly, into those wars . . . we would not be consulted in how a war would be started – the great powers would do that – and when it ended, no matter who won . . . we would not be consulted as to the terms on which it should end”. – Yours, etc,
ROGER COLE,
Chairman,
Peace & Neutrality Alliance,
Dalkey, Co Dublin.