International Developments: Statements
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-21
============================================================

Seán Crowe (SF), Dublin South-West

International developments is such a vague concept that it is hard to know where to start. The world is becoming increasingly chaotic and divided, with American strikes in Nigeria; the UAE arming both sides in Sudan; the shambolic ceasefire in Gaza that means that Palestinians are still dying; the ongoing conflict between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo that has displaced over a hundred thousand people into Burundi in just the past few weeks; and the ongoing war in Ukraine that grinds on. Reassuringly for Palestinians, we heard that Benjamin Netanyahu, who is responsible for the ongoing genocide in Gaza, is to join Trump's board of peace.
The current US Administration sees Europe as a punching bag and as a people that can be bullied and threatened. This is endorsed by some member states with High Representative Kallas’s comments somehow blaming others for the very real threats by the US on European sovereignty. Her comments on China are of particular interest given that the Taoiseach is only back from a trade mission to the country. It is a stark reminder that in an increasingly federalised Europe, Ireland’s views would be represented less and less and our ability to advocate for peace and conflict resolution would be greatly diminished. Ireland has so much to contribute on the world stage and that would be lessened if our course was determined solely by those in Europe like von der Leyen and Kallas who have done nothing to rein in Israel or the increasingly erratic USA.
Our over-reliance on American foreign direct investment places us on very shaky ground. Pulled on either side, east and west, the foundation of our economy is built on sand that shakes when Trump comes up with his latest schemes. We cannot derisk our economy any time soon but we must recognise that the rules based order that has existed since the end of the Cold War, and in many ways since the end of the Second World War, have been thrown out by the Americans. Greenland is only the thin end of the wedge. The US ambassador to Iceland has joked publicly that Iceland would be next after Greenland. For an ambassador to even say such things in private would have been unthinkable before Trump was President.
Appeasement has never been a successful policy. At best, it only buys you time. We appease and try to please and do not seem to grasp that we are living in a new age of imperialism. We need to finally accept that the rules by which we think the world is run are increasingly disregarded. Might makes it right, and the strongest can annex and vassalise whomever they wish.
Whether from east or west, international co-operation is at an all-time low. Multilateralism is becoming an endangered species. This is happening at a crucial time in the fight against climate change and for conflict resolution. Countries that try to stand in the way of war and genocide are excluded and even punished. They are often branded as terrorist sympathisers. Rather than looking to the future and how we divest from oil, conflicts are becoming increasingly bitter about the last of the great oil reserves. Look at Venezuela where Trump’s intervention was seemingly based entirely on the principle of seizing the country’s oil, only for the oil companies to embarrass him by deeming the venture not profitable enough.
The struggle for resources is only going to get worse and worse. Wars will be fought over them with increasingly regularity as they run out. We must ramp up our renewable energy programmes in Ireland. Renewable energy is energy security with solar and wind to replace oil and gas. Backed up by the Celtic interconnector, we can break free of a reliance on dwindling fuel supplies that come from the most exploited parts of the planet. We must also avoid putting money into the hands of oppressors such as Russia, the UAE and the US. All are bad actors and increasingly all fund their imperialist exploits through oil and gas.

---

Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-31T01:00:51+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-21