From top: Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy (left) and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney; Russian Ambassador to Ireland Yury Anatoliyevich Filatov
This morning.
Via RTÉ News:
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has spoken of his surprise that the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy, met the Russian ambassador to Ireland last Friday.
Mr Coveney made the comments at last night’s meeting of the Fine Gael parliamentary party.
In late November 2021, Mr Filatov requested a courtesy call with Lieutenant General Clancy and the meeting was arranged for late January 2022.
The meeting was held on 21 January in the Chief of Staff’s Office, McKee Barracks, Dublin.
Meanwhile…
John Brady, Sinn Fein’s Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Defence, has accused Mr Coveney of “undermining” the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy with his comments about meeting with the Russian Ambassador to Ireland.
Mr Coveney “took it upon himself in a public way” to make these comments and that it was “poor judgement” to do this, Mr Brady said.
Last night: Détente
Warning issued over Russian Navy exercises in February (RTE)
The Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy, pictured still wearing his official hat, after his meeting with the Russian ambassador to Ireland last Friday where they’d been doing a few Stoly shots.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DuI23zCudKY
And the head of the Irish Navy joined them, taking a break from planning to put a ship to sea sometime later this year ” so the lads can have a scramble from Haulbowline up to Galway for a few scoops.”
https://static.fanart.tv/fanart/tv/107551/hdclearart/captain-pugwash-58ed4146d85de.png
Coveneys qualifications were his surname so why are people surprised that he is is horseshat at his job?
So, amid escalating tensions and the possibility of conflict what of Ireland’s election to the UN Security Council? At the time the Department of Foreign Affairs stated:
“The opportunity to hold a seat on the Security Council occurs once-in-a-generation. Ireland is ready to take this opportunity to engage the Council membership and wider international community on critical aspects of international peace and security, in line with Ireland’s principled, consistent and independent foreign policy.”
We made a great deal of fuss about it at the time and our diplomats had cause to pop a few corks in celebration in Iveagh House. Since then, nothing but the ‘eunuch in the harem’ act from Coveney.
An empty vessel indeed.
A Min of Def worse than Varadkar was. Quite an achievement.
Fishermen doing Coveney job. And he doesn’t even know what his own staff are doing.