Irish Examiner view: Time for collective action to defend Europe
European Council president Antonio Costa, Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen earlier this month. File picture: Omar Havana/AP
Now that the European Commission is to publish its white paper on defence, we can expect plenty of debate in the coming days and weeks on this issue — which has rarely been more topical.
The white paper’s proposals aim to strengthen Europe’s security capacity, pressing matters in the context of Russia’s ongoing war with Ukraine as well as the threat from US president Donald Trump to pull out of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato).
In reality, those proposals mean collective action on the ground.
For instance, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has suggested the EU could purchase arms collectively; this would help individual states to replenish armouries which have been depleted due to the military support which has been, and continues to be, given to Ukraine.
The fact that Ukraine was invaded by a country which looms threateningly on the eastern fringes of the EU itself is another factor which was no doubt considered when this white paper was being written.
As was Donald Trump’s clear dislike of Nato, which has led to the possibility that America may abandon its long-time role as the ultimate guarantor of Europe’s security.
These considerations have already led individual countries taking action. French president Emmanuel Macron has invited other European leaders to discuss discuss how his country’s nuclear arsenal could be used as a deterrent against future aggression from Russia.
Obviously, The white paper has implications for Ireland.
It is understood that our Government has signalled its general support for the proposals, stressing that any initiatives arising from the white paper be voluntary in nature.
Such signals must be sent with some delicacy.
Neutrality is a redline topic in Irish politics, and one on which many people have positions which allow for very little flexibility.
It is one of the curses of modern political discourse that debates can be less a matter of exchanging ideas than simply reiterating one’s stance. However, we will need to have a rational debate on our security obligations as a member of the EU.
It is not so long when the prospect of a military attack on an EU member was unthinkable, but now it is a real possibility, and we must articulate our position clearly.
Blue skies and milder temperatures have heralded the real arrival of spring this week in much of the country, and the milder weather has rarely been more welcome.
It would be understandable, then, if readers were a little wary of the warning this week from the Climate Change Advisory Council, which has said action needs to be taken now to better prepare the country for the next major weather event.
Worthy advice which will probably serve to remind most of Storm Éowyn — the major weather event which caused havoc across the country in January and left hundreds of thousands of homes without power and water across Ireland.
The council has called specifically for the creation of a “national climate demand register”, which would monitor and record the economic, social, and environmental impacts of extreme weather events.
“The time to act is now,” said its chairman, Peter Thorne. “Proactive action can and must improve our preparedness for, and response to, rapidly emerging climate risks, to protect and support people, and future-proof our communities.”
These are reasonable points to make at any time, but they are all the more potent because of the lessons which were learned in the most testing circumstances during Storm Éowyn.
One of the big takeaways from that period was the sheer fragility of our basic infrastructure. The fact that in the worst cases it took weeks to restore electricity to parts of the country is a blunt indictment of our ability to maintain essential services.
What cannot be allowed to happen is a fading of the memory of the effects — and after-effects — of Storm Éowyn until the next severe storm comes howling in at us from the Atlantic. The climate crisis shows no signs of abating, which means more such extreme events can be expected.
All of which endorses Prof Thorne’s point. If we are proactive now, we can take the necessary steps and make the necessary investment to protect ourselves for the future.
The time to act is now.
A four-page section available this week with an Italian daily newspaper is the first in the world to be produced entirely by AI, according to the newspaper’s editor, Claudio Cerasa.
The section, ‘Il Foglio AI’, has been folded into the newspaper’s broadsheet edition and is available on news stands and online. Mr Cerasa said the AI-created supplement was part of a month-long journalistic experiment at the newspaper which aims to show the impact of this new technology.
“It will be the first daily newspaper in the world on newsstands created entirely using artificial intelligence,” said Mr Cerasa. “For everything. For the writing, the headlines, the quotes, the summaries. And, sometimes, even for the irony.”
Mr Cerasa added that journalists’ roles would be limited to “asking questions [into an AI tool] and reading the answers”.
It is not clear what Mr Cerasa’s role would be limited to in this new regime. In fact, given the times we live in, one would be forgiven for wondering if he too was an AI creation.
