Irish Defense Forces

<p>The Irish Defense Forces have conducted peacekeeping operations since 1958. Many of these have had a humanitarian aspect. Since 1994 however the Defense Forces have become involved in dedicated humanitarian operations notably in Africa Central America and the Balkans. These operations have been unorthodox in that they have deployed unarmed troops who are on special leave in civilian attire and under the auspices of international organizations nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) or Irish governmental organizations such as the Agency for Personal Service Overseas (APSO). These organizations acknowledge that Irish operations have been successful in the limited sense that they have temporarily benefitted both the host nations and their citizens but it is debatable whether they are successful in terms of sustainability and security. They have also lacked a proper command structure thereby leading to a potential breakdown in discipline. In their favor they contribute to a far better military/civilian relationship than do orthodox military humanitarian operations. This thesis will examine whether there are better ways of conducting such operations in the light of recent changes in the international environment such as Ireland's membership of Partnership for Peace developments regarding the Special High Readiness Brigade (SHIRBRIG) European security evolvement and other options.</p><p>This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore you will see the original copyright references library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world) and other notations in the work.</p><p>This work is in the public domain in the United States of America and possibly other nations. Within the United States you may freely copy and distribute this work as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.</p><p>As a reproduction of a historical artifact this work may contain missing or blurred pages poor pictures errant marks etc. Scholars believe and we concur that this work is important enough to be preserved reproduced and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.</p><br>