It was the Fianna Fáil Party that introduced military neutrality during the Second World War. The only party in this House that sought to actively undermine the Irish policy of military neutrality during the Second World War was the Sinn Féin Party. That party's leader erected a statue to Seán Russell who collaborated with the German Nazis. That is Sinn Féin's history of its commitment to military neutrality. Those are facts. They erected a statue and honoured the person who actively sought to undermine Eamon de Va…

We are not in any shape or form-----

I did not interrupt the Deputy, please allow me the courtesy of responding to his points.

There is no proposal and there will be no legislative proposal to come before this House to undermine our policy of military neutrality. We have made that crystal clear. We are not members of a military alliance. We are not joining NATO. There is no proposal to join NATO as the Deputy knows well because he slipped in his remarks that we want to participate in a European - I think he said - military framework. That is what he just said.

It is more dishonesty because, of course, we know Article 29.4.9° of the Constitution, which we put in in 2002 and reaffirmed in 2009, states: "The State shall not adopt a decision taken by the European Council to establish a common defence pursuant to Article 42 of the Treaty on European Union where that common defence would include the State." Therefore, we cannot, without a constitutional referendum, participate in any EU common defence pact. The Deputy should not set out false stories here.

The triple lock does not critically underpin our policy of military neutrality. It is essentially about the deployment of troops overseas. Why do we want to change it? Why do I want to amend it? It is because I do not believe that Russia, China or the United Kingdom or for that matter the United States or France should dictate Irish foreign policy or should dictate when we do or do not deploy troops.

The world has changed fundamentally. The UN Security Council could not even issue a statement on the invasion of Ukraine. We all know about the late Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Wagner Group. Russia is more interested now in deploying the Wagner Group to parts of the Sahel or other parts of the globe instead of any UN peacekeepers. That is the reality of where we are today. However, of course, Sinn Féin has had a history of being soft on Russia down through the years.

It supported Russia when it invaded Crimea in 2014. I was in this House and Sinn Féin's silence was clear to all. In fact, it sent people to international conferences supporting Russia's invasion of Crimea and going along with the Russian propaganda that there were neo-Nazis in Ukraine. The Deputy did that. That was Sinn Féin's position in 2014 and it got away with it.

Sinn Féin could not get away with it in the current crisis in terms of the war. Its whole foreign policy has been one of incoherence and incompetence. Ní aontaím leis an Teachta. Tá sé mícheart. Níl aon deacracht in aon chor ó thaobh an pholasaí atá againn ó thaobh neodracht mhíleata. Ní bheidh aon athrú ann. Caithfidh mé é sin a chur os comhair an Teachta.

There was absolutely no policy to undermine our military neutrality. The Deputy should stop deliberately creating a false story. The bottom line is this. The Deputy seems to have a view that Russia should dictate our foreign policy.

You are. That is exactly what you are saying. We know the-----

Through the Chair, I think-----

A Leas-Cheann Comhairle, when you say, "can we do it through the Chair", I have been doing it consistently through the Chair.

I have been interrupted repeatedly by Deputy Doherty------

-----and this has happened every week now. This is happening every week.

I believe-----

I want to make the point-----

I believe there is something morally wrong with the fact that an authoritarian and aggressive neo-imperialist power has a de facto veto on elements of how we as an independent Republic react to any given situation. That is the fundamental truth of where we are today. They invaded Ukraine, they violated the UN Charter and the Deputy is saying that they should have a veto over how, when and where we deploy our troops.

That is the essence of the Sinn Féin policy, which I reject and oppose. Finally-----

-----anything we do-----