Prompted by the alarm about the use of depleted uranium, PDFORRA has called for an international representative body for soldiers.
Mr John Lucey, general secretary of the representative body for members of the Defence Forces, said recent revelations concerning the health effects of radiation from depleted uranium meant that such a body was now necessary.
"At present individual countries such as Ireland, Germany, Belgium and Holland have representation, but this is much less effective without a formally accepted structure at the highest levels within the EU," he said.
The difficulties with regard to depleted uranium should have emerged far sooner in Ireland, he said, since it was being reported in other countries over recent months.
The association was "happy enough" that the Minister for Defence, Mr Smith, had been proactive in this matter. It accepted assurances given in relation to the present situation in Kosovo. However, it was important that such a situation was not repeated while Irish soldiers were on service with EU and UN forces.
The Green Party called on the Government to insist on an immediate ban on the use of depleted uranium weapons.
"The Government should follow in Germany's footsteps and insist on a complete ban on the use of depleted uranium. The Minister for Defence, Mr Smith, has so far failed to call for a ban, unlike his fellow EU partners," said the Green Party TD, Mr John Gormley.
He said that, contrary to NATO claims, depleted uranium, when disseminated as particles in the air, was extremely dangerous for military and civilian populations and the environment.
The Labour Party spokesman on foreign affairs, Mr Michael D. Higgins, said he had written to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mrs Mary Robinson, asking her to investigate the use of depleted uranium and chemical substances in warfare.
Mr Higgins said he had made the request in light of the rise in the number of cases of leukaemia and cancer-related illnesses in conflict regions, particularly affecting children.