186. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Defence to outline the defensive drone capacity of the Defence Forces; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [54267/26]

One of my key priorities as Minister for Defence is to ensure that the operational capacity of the Defence Forces is maintained and developed in line with the Government’s decision to move to Level of Ambition 2 (LOA2), as defined by the Commission on the Defence Forces (CODF).

The Military Radar Programme is central to this and I am pleased to say that very good progress is being made in this regard. This Programme provides for the delivery of a suite of military radar systems and also takes account of the need to enhance our Ground Based Air Defence capabilities, which includes Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS).

While full delivery of the overall Programme will be complex, it has been prioritised with a target date of the end of 2028 identified in the updated CODF Detailed Implementation Plan, which I published recently, for the development of a complete "Recognised Air Picture". In light of Ireland assuming the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of this year, I had prioritised the delivery of C-UAS capabilities for the Defence Forces and, following Dáil approval last December of a Supplementary Estimate, contractual arrangements were put in place which enabled delivery of these capabilities during the first half of this year.

In line with the ongoing roll-out of these capabilities, a wide range of equipment and tactical level training of military personnel has been ongoing since earlier this year and the further roll-out of C-UAS capabilities will continue this year.

For operational and national security reasons, it would be inappropriate to make any further comment regarding the capabilities that are now in place.