Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea has said he hopes Irish troops will remain in Chad after next March, despite recommendations in the McCarthy report that the troops be withdrawn as a cost-saving measure.
The Minister was speaking in Limerick after reviewing the 410 members of the 101st Infantry Battalion who are preparing for their deployment to the UN mission in Chad on 17 September.
Minister O'Dea said that, while noting the recommendations of the McCarthy report, all the views around the Cabinet table and within Government is that the Irish troop presence in Chad should remain for the next two to three years.
He added that this would ultimately be a Government decision but that his preference would be for the troops to remain to help stabilise the situation in Chad.
