Madam, - Another nail has been driven in the coffin of Irish neutrality with the findings of the leaked European Parliament committee report on the use of EU airspace and airports for CIA "rendition" flights. Irish foreign policy increasingly appears to consist of ad hoc, off-the-cuff responses to unfolding international events. This neither serves the country's interests nor makes a contribution to resolving world conflict and human suffering.
The defence offered by the Government is that it has received specific assurances from the US government in relation to flights landing at Shannon. Such assurances should be seen in the light of previous US actions. This is basically the same US administration that lied to itself. It fed misleading information on weapons of mass destruction to its own Secretary of State at the time, Colin Powell, and sent him into the UN Security Council to make a case for war against Iraq. Little wonder he declined to go forward for a second term.
This naivety has typified Irish foreign policy. After the largest public street protests for 20 years, the Government claimed that this showed support for its position on the war in Iraq. It also suggested that anyone with evidence of renditions through Shannon should notify the gardaí in Ennis.
In the broader context of international affairs, Ireland has consistently boxed above its weight on the international stage. With a little vision and a lot of energy and commitment, the international perception of Ireland as a small, neutral country with high standing in the EU and UN could have been developed to provide a focal point for other small countries to help resolve conflict situations.
While many would say that this project would take years to make any impact, if in fact it ever would, it is important to remember that history has shown that many conflicts occur repeatedly, separated only by the passage of time and the death and suffering of yet more innocent victims.
If I am to be evaporated in the nuclear explosion of some deluded terrorist, I would at least like the comfort of knowing it was happening because my country had pursued world peace and not because my government had no moral backbone. - Yours, etc,
FERGAL MOLLOY, Wendover, Strawberry Beds, Dublin 20.
Madam, - I see that the Taoiseach is deeply troubled by the British government's alleged collusion in bombings carried out in this State.
Is he at all troubled by the Irish Government's alleged collusion in the bombing and invasion of Iraq, the destruction of its society and the theft of its resources? Is he troubled by the blind eye his Government has consistently turned to the CIA's campaign of kidnappings and tortures? - Yours, etc,
BRIAN J GOGGIN, Castleconnell, Co Limerick.