DUBLIN, Ireland: The Government plans to move ahead with proposals to remove the "triple lock" system that controls overseas deployment of Irish troops.

This decision is expected to lead to a strong political clash with Opposition parties, as it touches on Ireland's long-standing policy of military neutrality.

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defense Helen McEntee will present the Defense (Amendment) Bill 2026 to the Cabinet for approval in the first half of this month.

The new law would remove the triple-lock system, which currently requires approval from the Government, the Dáil, and the UN Security Council before the Irish Defense Forces can be sent abroad on international missions.

Ministers say the current system makes Ireland dependent on other countries' decisions and can prevent it from participating in peacekeeping and security missions.

Under McEntee's proposal, approval from the UN Security Council would no longer be required, though all missions would still have to comply with the UN Charter.

The triple lock was introduced after the first Nice Treaty was rejected in 2001, to strengthen Ireland's position as a neutral country during EU expansion.

McEntee told the Cabinet last week that Ireland had to withdraw from Operation Irini after the mission's UN Security Council mandate expired on May 24.

The mission enforced a UN arms embargo on Libya. In 2023, Ireland sent one Naval Service patrol vessel for 46 days as part of the operation, under the triple-lock system.

Because a UN mandate is required under the triple lock, McEntee said Ireland could not continue in the mission after May 24.

Last week, replying to a parliamentary question from Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne, she said that without the triple lock, the Government's decision on Operation Irini would have been significantly different.