Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation
Dail Éireann — 2026-10-01
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Simon Harris (FG), Wicklow

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. Obviously, we want to do all we can to support Ukraine and stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes. In that context, we have what is called a light tactical armoured vehicle fleet. It was procured through a competitive process and provided an important operational capacity to our Defence Forces from 2010 until its withdrawal from service in 2023 at the end of its planned service life. There was a detailed technical assessment on its withdrawal from the service and the Defence Forces concluded that the fleet could be made available for donation for potential restoration and operational use by the armed forces of Ukraine for the humanitarian purpose the Deputy highlighted. The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine expressed its sincere gratitude and thanked Ireland for its continued support but ultimately on that occasion, it did not accept the vehicles. That was an operational decision for the Ukrainian authorities.
However, the future of the fleet will now be considered by the Department of Defence and the Defence Forces. A board of survey will be convened by the Defence Forces in accordance with the Defence Forces regulation and it will make a recommendation on the future disposal of the vehicle.
Preparatory work for the board of survey is currently under way. We need that to do its work first, and that will come up with various options. I can confirm that any proposals received regarding it will, of course, factor in our Department's assessment of the options that are available.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-10-01/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-10-05T01:01:00+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-10-01