Embracing the proposed European Constitution offers the potential for Europe to play a positive role in contributing to a peaceful, prosperous, and habitable world, writes Proinsias De Rossa MEP
Andy Storey's article on the implications for Ireland of the proposed European Constitution ( February 3rd) both in terms of its rational tone and the questions he poses is a welcome contribution to the debate. Many of the issues he raises relate generally to how Ireland might conceive its role and responsibilities in the world at large.
What he leaves out of consideration are the values, objectives, laws and the decision-making process which would govern the EU's actions at home and abroad under the constitution. When these are taken into consideration it's clear that the "likelihood of the dispatch of EU military advisers to dictators suppressing rebel movements" is, as he suggests, an alarmist scenario.
The proposed constitution commits the EU to working within its borders and on the world stage for the values of human dignity, liberty, democracy, equality, the rule of law, respect for human rights, equality between women and men and the rights of minorities.
In addition, we would be committed to the eradication of poverty in the world, free and fair trade and the sustainable development of the planet. Unanimity (regrettably) would continue to be the general rule for decisions in the Common Foreign and Security Policy sphere, while member-states would still be able to opt out of, or into, any decision they choose. The proposed constitution obliges the EU, in undertaking any mission, to fully respect international law and the principles of the UN Charter.
The EU does not and would not under the proposed constitution interfere in the way Ireland defends itself, or how we organise, equip or deploy our Defence Forces. Neither does it nor would it dictate to us whether or not we should be militarily neutral. All of these matters would remain entirely a matter for the Irish people and the governments we elect.
Andy Storey says that the proposed constitution establishes a European Armaments Agency. But what he fails to mention is that this agency, the European Defence Agency, is already up and running since last year under existing treaties.
The problem here is a democratic deficit in Irish politics. How could the Irish Government at European level make such an important decision without the Irish people having an opportunity to consider it, or requiring a debate in the Oireachtas? But this Irish political problem is not a legitimate reason for seeking to defeat the proposed constitution. What we need to do is amend the legislation to strengthen how the Oireachtas holds the government to account on European matters.
Nor is there anything in the European Constitution that obliges us to abandon or modify the "triple-lock'"policy on deployment of Irish troops (i.e. cabinet decision plus approval of the Oireachtas for UN-mandated missions).
The requirement for a UN mandate is an important safeguard. But it is reasonable to ask if this position is correct in all circumstances and serves our declared objective in favour of peacekeeping? In the instance referred to in your letters page by Mr Daniel Keohane (February 5th) regarding the vetoing by China of a UN-mandate for a mission in Macedonia, we precluded ourselves even though there was general agreement that it was a legitimate and necessary intervention to save lives.
It is my view that we in Ireland need the flexibility to modify the UN-mandate requirement in such circumstances. Any such modifications would have to be the exception rather than the rule and would have to be fully accountable to the Oireachtas. The circumstances in which it might be modified should be laid down in domestic law. Participation could be in response to a request from the UN Secretary General, be conditional on compliance with the principles of the UN Charter and in conformity with international law.
One way of having the broader debate that Andy Storey urges would be for the Government to publish a Green Paper on Common Foreign and Security Policy. This would locate it within the broad foreign policy and defence approach of the State. Such a paper could revisit the progressive foreign policy position that the Rainbow government developed 10 years ago as a basis for Ireland's engagement with the modern world. That document sought to develop an approach that fitted our traditions while enabling us to act in an ethical way on global issues as they presented themselves at that time.
Since then global power relationships and threats have changed significantly: the consequences of the ending of the Cold War have worked their way through our international system; the 9/11 and Madrid atrocities require a coherent European response; the failures of neo-liberal economics are increasingly obvious, globally as well as nationally; we have a military superpower which has embarked on disastrous unilateralism and pre-emptive war; and we have a lamentably weak UN.
Adopting an ethical approach to foreign policy (and by extension defence policy) does require us to recognise that world power rivalries and globalisation, as we know it, are to a large extent driven by self-interest, often at the expense of those most in need of help.
As a small state with no global power agenda, we nevertheless do have self-interests and responsibilities. How can we avoid self-interest overpowering our ethical standards? For example, what improvements to our democratic decision-making procedures can we put in place to effectively challenge odious government decisions like the one to allow the US use Shannon Airport for the prosecution of its illegal war in Iraq?
There is a significant agenda for debate in Ireland in all of this. I suggest that rejecting the proposed European Constitution is not the way to begin. The constitution offers the potential - and no more than that - for Europe to play a positive role in contributing to a peaceful, prosperous, and habitable world.
Proinsias De Rossa is Labour MEP for Dublin and was a Dáil representative at the Convention on the Future of Europe which prepared the draft constitution in 2003