Richard Boyd Barrett: Condemns Trump, defends Irish neutrality
Richard Boyd Barrett warned that Donald Trump is undermining the international rules-based order and has emboldened Israel to restart what he called a campaign of genocide in Gaza. He accused the Irish government of deceiving the public by abandoning neutrality, removing the triple lock, and aligning more closely with a militarising Europe and NATO.
He said Donald Trump is "setting fire to the international rules-based order," openly rejecting international law and morality and endorsing a politics of "might is right." He accused Trump of green-lighting Israel to "restart and accelerate its campaign of genocide" in Gaza and of promoting a plan for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza.
He described the Irish government's response as pathetic and deceptive, saying it has "pathetically tried to grovel" and is "deceiving the Irish public." He argued the government is abandoning Ireland's tradition of neutrality at a moment when, he said, neutrality is needed most.
He criticised the removal of the triple lock and warned that doing so pulls Ireland closer to a militarising Europe and a NATO military alliance dominated by the United States, Britain, France and Germany. He said those same powers, he alleged, are arming and emboldening the violence in Gaza.
He called for Ireland to stand proudly on its neutrality, retain the triple lock, impose sanctions and be a voice for peace rather than aligning more closely with NATO. He acknowledged that Putin is a tyrant but argued that opposing one form of imperialism should not lead Ireland to align with other powers accused of supporting atrocities.
Main allegations against Trump
He said Donald Trump is "setting fire to the international rules-based order," openly rejecting international law and morality and endorsing a politics of "might is right." He accused Trump of green-lighting Israel to "restart and accelerate its campaign of genocide" in Gaza and of promoting a plan for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza.
Critique of the Irish government
He described the Irish government's response as pathetic and deceptive, saying it has "pathetically tried to grovel" and is "deceiving the Irish public." He argued the government is abandoning Ireland's tradition of neutrality at a moment when, he said, neutrality is needed most.
Concerns about the triple lock and NATO alignment
He criticised the removal of the triple lock and warned that doing so pulls Ireland closer to a militarising Europe and a NATO military alliance dominated by the United States, Britain, France and Germany. He said those same powers, he alleged, are arming and emboldening the violence in Gaza.
Policy stance and consequences
He called for Ireland to stand proudly on its neutrality, retain the triple lock, impose sanctions and be a voice for peace rather than aligning more closely with NATO. He acknowledged that Putin is a tyrant but argued that opposing one form of imperialism should not lead Ireland to align with other powers accused of supporting atrocities.
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Transcript
Yeah, Donald Trump is setting fire to the international rules-based order. He's putting two fingers up to any notion of international law, of morality, of human decency. And the most egregious example of this is he's given a green light to Israel to restart and accelerate its campaign of genocide against the people of Gaza, directly emboldened by Trump's plan for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza. And the idea that being servile or being diplomatic in in front of somebody who is out to set the world's international order and international law on fire and who is brazenly saying this is about might is right, we'll take the resources of Ukraine, we'll turn Gaza into a casino owned by the United States, maybe owned by Donald Trump himself. And yet the Irish government pathetically tried to grovel in front of this pig and tyrant and pretend that he's normal or that some sort of reasonable diplomacy can take place with this monster and the monstrous agenda he's pursuing is pathetic. But what's even worse than that is while Trump is doing this, emboldening, encouraging, green lighting genocide against the people of Gaza and Palestine, the Irish government is, through the back door, deceiving the Irish public in the process, smashing up Irish neutrality at precisely the time when Irish neutrality is more important than ever. where our precious tradition of neutrality which is based in our history of fighting against our empires, of freeing ourselves from colonialism and empire and all of the apartheid that was inflicted on us, we abandon our neutrality by getting rid of the triple lock so that we can align ourselves with Europe as it militarizes and pulls closer to a NATO military alliance controlled by precisely the powers that have armed and emboldened the genocide against the people of Gaza. So of course Putin is a tyrant, he's an imperialist, he's a thug and we need to stand up against people like him. But do we seriously suggest we do so by aligning ourselves even more closely with a NATO military alliance dominated by the United States, by Britain, by France, by Germany, the very people who are arming the Israeli genocide against the people of Gaza. We shall be standing now proudly on our neutrality, not aligning with them, not giving up the triple lock and imposing sanctions and being a voice for peace and against the thuggery that both Putin and Trump represent. Mr Margaret's position, talk to us. Mr Corinthians, talk to us. What about our behaviour? stages? osterior N