Results 81-100 of 1,107 for speaker:Tom Clonan
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025: Discussion (Resumed) (1 Jul 2025)
Tom Clonan: Notwithstanding what has happened-----
- Seanad: Nursing Homes and Care for Older Persons: Statements (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Apologies as I was at committee with Senator Kyne and unable to attend. I am just going through the Minister of State’s statement. Regarding the abuse that “RTÉ Investigates” uncovered, not everybody will agree with me on this but I believe that was a predictable and foreseeable set of circumstances given the model of nursing care provision and the model for care...
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Cuirim fáilte roimh na finnéithe. I thank them for their presentations. Professor Tonra and I have spoken at conferences together. I am a great admirer of his work. We agree on most things but there are some areas we disagree on. He framed his statement in the opening paragraph by stating that the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine has profoundly reshaped Europe’s...
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: That is great. I share that view because for me it certainly is not. It has been asserted repeatedly that Russia could successively mount a ground invasion of a NATO state by 2029. Does Professor Tonra share that view?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Does Professor Tonra think that the Russians could mount a successful ground invasion of a NATO state by 2029?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Our friend and colleague Ed Burke wrote in The Irish Times last week that Russia can produce 1,500 main battle tanks every year. Does Professor Tonra share that view?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: For the record, the Russians certainly cannot. They can only produce a small fraction of that. Russia has a gross domestic product that is roughly similar to Spain’s. The European Union has a GDP 20 times that of Russia. Even without the US financial commitment to NATO in Europe, we dwarf Russia in terms of our military. I share Deputy Stanley’s view. I grew up in the...
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Does Professor Tonra not believe, bearing in mind the text Mark Rutte just sent to Trump, that the United States is the dominant partner or that it would easily relinquish its dominant control of NATO-----
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Professor Tora is asserting that but what evidence does he have?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: What President Trump says and what the United States does are two different things as we all know.
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: If we look at the US's de facto commitment to NATO in terms of its permanent representation in Brussels and its constant participation in European collective security exercises in the Baltic states in the past couple of months; where is the evidence to suggest the US is going to leave and therefore, we somehow have to wake up and smell the coffee because things have changed?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Have they relinquished it?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Have they relinquished it?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Have they relinquished it?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Have they relinquished it?
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: The answer is "No".
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: I just have a quick question for Mr. Noonan. He said, and this was confirmed by the officials from the Department, that the Bill does not modify the triple lock; it simply removes it. Based on what he is saying that we need to consider, and I thank Professor Tonra for the safeguards that he suggested on page 8 in his document, which is excellent-----
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Does this mean that any future government can send any number of Irish troops anywhere in the world to any conflict at any time in the future just by a simple government majority.
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: I am conscious of time and that Deputy Callaghan is here now. If she wants to take my time, she may do so.
- Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)
Tom Clonan: Mr. Murphy cited possible concerns over the renewal of the UN Security Council mandate that would have led to a rapid withdrawal from Chad. He talked about having to leave all our bullets, weapons and things behind because of the rainy season and so on. I was on a mission where a rapid evacuation almost happened because we came under sustained attack from the Israelis. Is it not more usual...