A HISTORIC agreement between Britain and Ireland will see greater collaboration of the two countries’ armies.
Michael Fallon MP became the first British Secretary of State for Defence to visit Ireland in an official capacity, as part of the landmark deal.
Ireland’s Minister for Defence Simon Coveney welcomed Mr Fallon to Dublin Castle, where both politicians signed the ‘Memorandum of Understanding’, marking a mutually beneficial deal between the two states.
The main topics that the Memorandum of Understanding pertains to are defence and security cooperation between Ireland and Britain.
Speaking of the deal, Minister Coveney said: “The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding places existing cooperation arrangements in the Defence area between Ireland and the UK on a more formal and enduring footing.”
The deal will allow for both armies to develop on training, procurement and deployment.
Both the British and Irish Armies are currently involved with a peacekeeping mission in Mali – on-going since 2013 – but the Memorandum of Understanding marks the first official collaboration between the two countries.
Fallon believes the latest deal will build on this existing relationship between the armies.
"It might surprise actually the peoples of our two countries at just how much cooperation and training is already happening between our armed forces - but it's never been put on to a formal basis," he said.
