Gerard P. Craughwell: Exposes War Profiteering, Demands Regulators
Gerard P. Craughwell addresses concerns in the Dáil about financial profiteering linked to modern wars, alleging market trades timed to political statements and calling for regulatory scrutiny. He warns that ongoing conflicts - from Ukraine to Iran - are costing lives and destabilising the global economy.
Market timing and suspicion
Gerard P. Craughwell lays out circumstantial evidence that large stock-market transactions often follow high-level political statements. He argues these patterns suggest people close to decision-makers benefit financially from military escalation and asks directly: where are the regulators?
Human cost and international consequences
Craughwell emphasises the human toll of war, noting recent casualties among peacekeepers and the steady daily loss of life in conflict zones. He warns that the Iran conflict could produce a prolonged global recession and that military threats feed arms industries and market speculation.
Personal observations and political challenge
Drawing on a 2017 visit to Tehran, Craughwell contrasts ordinary Iranians with ruling mullahs, arguing regime change cannot be achieved from 35,000 feet. He calls on politicians to call out what he terms corrupt profiteering and to take a strong stand against leaders whose actions fuel further violence.
Domestic political implications
Craughwell names Trump and Netanyahu as figures whose policies and rhetoric have contributed to escalation and insists Irish politicians should speak out. He urges regulatory bodies and elected officials to investigate commercial activity tied to war and to protect ordinary people from its consequences.
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Go raibh maith agat, Cathaoirleach. As I rise, I just want to remember the second French peacekeeper that has now died as a result of his injuries in South Lebanon. And that brings me to the issue of the wars that are raging in the world at the moment. And I ask myself, the more I read, where are the regulators? Where are the people that look at what might be regarded as corrupt dealings? We see constantly circumstantial evidence that every time the President of the United States makes a statement, 15 or 20 minutes before the statement is made, there is massive, and I mean massive, transactions on the stock exchange. People are making money out of war. And it seems that the Ukraine war is no longer a money cash cow, because there seems to be zero interest in it, despite the fact that there are hundreds of people being killed every day of the week. But Iran, the very President who said in his campaign, criticised previous Presidents about going to war in the Middle East, because he would never win a war in the Middle East. What did he do? He started a war in the Middle East. And we see every time a statement is made, the stock market jumps either up or down. We see trades being made on either futures, or we see trades being made on the rising stock market. Billions are being made, and circumstantial evidence suggests that people close to the President of the United States are making massive amounts of money. And my question is, where are the regulators? Where are the people who look after the little people of this world? Are we now playing with the lives of thousands of people? The war in Iran doesn't just affect Iran and the United States, it is causing a massive, massive recession throughout the world. This war will take 10 years to get over, but Mr Trump is not yet finished. He obviously hasn't made enough out of it at this stage. And I really think that it behoves all of us that hold political office to call out this corruption, because that's what it is. I'm not sure whether Trump himself is making money out of it, but certainly there are people. And the circumstantial evidence is there for everybody to see. They need to stop and look and see what's going on. It is absolutely criminal, and innocent people are dying. I visited Tehran in 2017 as a delegation from this state. The ordinary people of Iran are no different than you and I. They drink coffee, they play with their kids, they shop, they do all the things normal people do. The mullahs, on the other hand, they need to be taken out. But by God, Trump's method of taking them out, you cannot change regime from 35,000 feet. And threats of putting boots on the ground, it'll do great for the arms industry, it'll do great for anybody that has a view, Bob, on the stock exchange. But I really think we need to call us out as politicians, and this country should take a very strong stand against Netanyahu, against Trump, against the mullahs. Thank you.
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