Ireland and the UK will increasingly focus on maritime security cooperation to protect undersea cables after signing a renewed defence agreement, the Taoiseach has said.
Speaking after the conclusion of the UK-Ireland summit in Fota House, Co Cork, Micheál Martin said the renewed memorandum of understanding means “we would coordinate more in terms of protecting subsea cables, protecting gas connectors and other connections under the water, which is critical to economic security”.
Martin, who hosted UK prime minister Keir Starmer and several members of his cabinet in Cork, said: “We know that certain elements have been observing cables and other vital infrastructure and so that’s the context. And it’s to protect that and to make sure we can respond effectively if an event was to happen.”
A joint communique issued by the governments after the summit committed to “targeted maritime security activity and closer liaison between our defence and naval organisations”.
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It said this would pave the way for potential procurement initiatives and establish a forum for sharing information and coordinating responses to major subsea communication cable incidents that may affect Ireland or the UK. A series of live exercises are to be carried out to test readiness, with the first scheduled in September.
In opening remarks at the summit, Starmer also emphasised security cooperation and the new agreement.
“That’s got to be coordinated, we’ve got to collaborate, otherwise we won’t get strategically what we need when it comes to defence and security.”
He spoke about joint work on cyber and maritime security, saying it was “vital” to move that work forward, pointing to undersea infrastructure in the Irish Sea and northeast Atlantic.
Also speaking after the summit, Minister for Defence Helen McEntee said the deal was “recognising the changed security environment that we’re living in”.
She said it respected Irish neutrality, sovereignty and territorial integrity, adding: “We’re militarily neutral but we’re not neutral to any of the threats that exist at the moment. The threat in our maritime domain – space that is seven times the size of our landmass – is there, it’s real”.
The renewed defence agreement updates an existing 2015 deal, but McEntee said cooperation would now be “more targeted and focused”. It would allow for a focus on maritime security “in a way that we haven’t before”.
The memorandum says both governments will “explore opportunities for joint procurement of military equipment” and new government-to-government sales.
“In the air and cyber domain, the UK and Ireland will boost their information sharing, improve joint situational awareness, and increase resilience against threats,” it notes.
Asked if this would mean more British military activity in Irish seas or airspace, she said all activities would be governed by existing protocols, adding that if an issue occurs, “there would be support from the UK in the way that there could be support from other countries”. The renewed deal was “about putting that structure in place”.
Both McEntee and Martin pointed to a cyberattack on the Cork-based medtech firm Stryker in recent days, which has been linked to an Iranian-backed hacker network.
Starmer said that on Thursday night, RAF Typhoon jets had extended their actions intercepting drones heading toward Bahrain as well as Cyprus.
Pointing to the fallout from the Ukraine war and the conflict in the Gulf, Starmer said: “You can see that when it comes to energy, our ability to collaborate and co-operate for energy security . . . is critical as we go forward.”
With an agenda focused on trade and security issues, as well as seeking a post-Brexit diplomatic “reset”, both heads of government sought during public comments to emphasise co-ordination with allies in a time of international disruption.
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During the visit, Starmer announced inward investments to the UK from Irish companies worth about £900 million (€1.04 billion). The British embassy in Dublin said this would create 850 jobs. Both governments pointed to trade flows worth nearly €2 billion a week between the two economies.
Meanwhile, about 20 pro-Palestinian supporters from the Cobh Palestine Solidarity Campaign mounted a protest at Belvelly Bridge, a few hundred metres from the entrance to Fota Island Resort where the summit was taking place. One woman, in her 40s, was arrested for public disorder and removed from the scene. She was later released without charge.
