There are “very serious red flags” with US president Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, Ireland’s deputy premier said.
Simon Harris said he cannot see a scenario in which Ireland takes part in the group as it is currently constructed.
The board was initially expected to be a small group of figures overseeing the ceasefire in the Middle East, but appears to have evolved into something more wide-reaching – in which dozens of countries have been invited to participate in.
At a signing event held by Mr Trump at Davos on Thursday, he said the group had the “chance to be one of the most consequential bodies ever created”, and said he was “honoured” to be its chairman.
Mr Harris was asked in the Irish parliament whether Ireland can rule out taking part in the group.
He said that the proposal has “very serious red flags”, including no mention of Gaza and the involvement of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
“Anything Putin is considering joining with the word ‘peace’ in it does not sit well,” Mr Harris told the Dail during Leaders’ Questions on Thursday.
He said the original plan was to create a board to oversee a peace plan for Gaza, which was endorsed by the United Nations in November.
Mr Harris said at that time, Ireland and other European countries “were eager to play a constructive role”, and said Ireland could offer expertise in conflict resolution and decommissioning.
“Let me also be very clear, what we are seeing today at this signing ceremony could not be further removed from that original conversation,” the Tanaiste said.
“What the Taoiseach (Micheal Martin) is doing on behalf of the Government by not turning up at the signing ceremony today is entirely responsible.
“My personal view and the view of Government colleagues is that we cannot see any scenario in which Ireland can participate in the so-called board of peace as currently constructed.”
He said that no European leader attended the signing ceremony bar Trump’s ally, Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban, but he expected the issue to be discussed further at the European Council on Thursday night.
Mr Harris was responding to questions from the Social Democrats deputy leader Cian O’Callaghan.
He said the board should be renamed “the board of autocrats and war criminals” due to the participation of Mr Putin, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Belarus’ Aleksandr Lukashenko.
“To highlight the absurdity of this travesty, Netanyahu is unable to attend a signing ceremony for the board of peace today because as an indicted war criminal he fears being arrested if he turns up in Davos,” Mr O’Callaghan said.
He said that while several European countries had ruled out signing up to the board, the Irish government had not.
“Among their number are Sweden, Norway, France, Slovenia and now the UK but incredibly the Tanaiste’s Government is still apparently mulling over whether or not it should sign up,” he said.
“This begs the question of whether there is any outrage perpetrated by Trump that it is willing to take a strong and principled stand on.”
