Baineann mo cheist lenár bpolasaí neodrachta. Ba pholasaí é a lig dúinn suíochán a fháil ar an gComhairle Slándála agus meas a shaothrú i measc thíortha an domhain. Ba pholasaí é a lig dúinn a bheith mar ghuth ar son na saoirse agus a bheith i measc tíortha a bhfuil a muinín acu asainn ó thaobh ár gcuid ionracais de. My question relates to our neutrality. I refer to the Taoiseach's comments, the comments of the Tánaiste and the Minister for Defence, and various well-placed articles telling us it is time to get rid of our policy of neutrality. I stand here today without any hesitation in saying I am absolutely appalled and worried by those comments. The policy of neutrality is not a passive policy but a very active policy. One of the Taoiseach's predecessors, whom he has quoted, ironically in an article written by a Russian on the background to the non-proliferation treaty, said, "It was not only the persistence, skill and persuasiveness of Irish diplomacy but its strong motivation that, taken together, achieved the result recorded in these pages." That was the effort over numerous years by Frank Aiken, almost a single voice, with the help of good public servants, that eventually led many years later to the non-proliferation treaty in 1968.

Neutrality has been under threat by every single representative of the establishment for a long time. It happened with the Nice treaty, on which we had to vote twice, and then a declaration was made in Seville. It happened with the Lisbon treaty, on which we had to vote twice, and all the arguments that we made then came true and we eventually got a declaration on protocols. Fast-forward now to the middle of a crisis, where we should be using all our effort to help the Ukrainian people, with whom I stand in solidarity, and we are being deflected by various powerful voices that infantilise and demonise people, including Deputies, who dare to speak out. They tell us we should grow up, that we should be a voice for war and more death. I fundamentally object to that and to the pressure being put on that we would all speak with the same voice. I will not. That is not what I was elected to do, while still standing in solidarity with the Ukrainian people and doing everything possible to help them. Where is our voice for the diplomacy that should be taking place? It seems to be lost on the Government that it is meeting in Versaille and the last time an agreement was made in Versaille it related to a second world war. I ask that the Taoiseach confirm here today that he has no intention of getting rid of our policy of neutrality.

I am surprised that the Deputy seems to quote me as saying I want to get rid of neutrality. I never-----

I am sorry if I am wrong. Am I wrong? If I am, I am delighted.

The Deputy is wrong, and I think she knows she is wrong, but it did not stop her saying it, which is a disingenuous way to behave. Yesterday in the House I spoke on this. I referred to Frank Aiken and our policy and our proactive role in nuclear non-proliferation as well as the role of Fianna Fáil's Frank Aiken, the heroic work he did and how that would impact any debate on military neutrality. Our neutrality is a military neutrality insofar as we are not members of any defence alliance. It is up to other countries if they want to volunteer to be part of defensive alliances, which is what NATO is. From the Irish perspective, we stayed outside any military block. In the context of the Nice referendum, we inserted into the Constitution a provision which means we cannot join a European defence pact without a constitutional referendum. Also, over the years we have agreed a triple lock mechanism which means that the participation of Irish troops in any mission has to be under the auspice of a UN resolution, with approval by the Government and the Oireachtas. The point I am making is that, given what has happened in the appalling imperialist war of atrocities on the people of Ukraine, undertaken by Russia alone, people are questioning things and reflecting. That is legitimate in a democracy.

I am not diverting anybody because I did not raise these issues. They were raised on the left by Deputies Paul Murphy and Mick Barry. They have raised the issue of NATO consistently over the past three or four weeks and they were blaming NATO for the war before it started. They called NATO "warmongers". We should concentrate on the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and on using everything to end the war and stop the appalling humanitarian crisis that is unfolding. Discussions are under way about humanitarian corridors. We need to get humanitarian assistance into the cities under bombardment because we are hearing of children dying from dehydration. We saw on the news last evening families not having access to proper food. That should be our immediate priority and I suggested a citizens' assembly well after this could be a meaningful way of having an informed reflection. That would include Ireland's unique role in nuclear non-proliferation and our role as peacekeepers, which has been a consistent factor in our independent foreign policy and has stood us well through the years.

I am not quite clear which side of his mouth the Taoiseach is speaking out of. If he is confirming that he is not in favour of changing our policy of neutrality, I welcome that and I apologise if I misinterpreted anything that was attributed to him. The people have spoken repeatedly, most recently in research by Amárach, and overwhelmingly have said we should stand by Ukraine and help it in every possible way with humanitarian aid, but we should retain our neutrality, not in a passive, negative way but in a positive way for peace in the world. That is what they are saying and have always said, including prior to the Nice and Lisbon treaty referendums. I am asking the Taoiseach to confirm that and he seems to have done so. On whether the citizens' assembly is the way to go, I am open to that and I do not mind. I want confirmation, which he appears to have now given.

The biased commentary in all the media, which has suggested we are bold children when we stand up and has demonised us, is not helpful to democracy. It certainly is not democracy because at this point we need people to reflect like Frank Aiken reflected, even though he made it clear he was for democracy and western power. We need a period of reflection and of thinking how to use our voice in the best way possible to promote peace and diplomacy. The Taoiseach should reflect on Versailles when he is there.

It is interesting to look at our history of neutrality. De Valera is regarded as the person who conceived the policy during the Second World War because of historical issues in our relationship with the UK. Nonetheless, during the League of Nations in the 1930s, he was deeply disappointed that force was not used against Italy when it invaded Ethiopia, the point being that we can never be neutral against despots and dictators who invade a country unprovoked and unjustifiably.

We are not politically neutral. We are members of the EU and we have consistently pursued a policy in that context on security and defence. We joined the Partnership for Peace with NATO in 1999 to develop interoperability of our military forces so they could operate with countries in NATO on peacekeeping or peace enforcement measures. We have participated in battle groups that have not been deployed. The triple lock applies if we are ever to participate in any mission of that kind.

In the context in the new world of cybersecurity, we are vulnerable. Who came to our assistance when we had a savage cyberattack on our health services? Poland, the UK and countries in the European Union. We have to acknowledge the world is changing from a security perspective and there are vulnerabilities in Europe that we cannot be blind to. That is why we need, at a later time, a more informed debate and reflection on it.

That concludes Leaders' Questions well over time, I am afraid.