Junior Minister at the Justice Department, Willie O'Dea, has said there is nothing covert or secret about the US military's use of Shannon Airport to refuel planes.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, the Limerick East TD said that the Government's policy on the issue was the same as successive governments in the past.
He admitted that the traffic of civilian aircraft carrying troops has increased in recent weeks, but said it was nothing like the numbers suggested by peace campaigners.
Anti-war activists have set up a peace camp at Shannon to protest against its use by military aircraft. They say the military traffic is breaching Ireland's traditional policy of neutrality and is making Shannon a potential terrorist target.
Last night, Foreign Affairs Minister Brian Cowen said it was simply not the case that the airport was being used to transport large quantities of arms to the Gulf.
But this morning, Mr O'Dea said that there is some ambiguity about whether the troops on civilian planes were travelling with personal sidearms. He said that they could not carry them into the airport, and that the Government has requested that they be notified if the planes are carrying personal weapons.
Fine Gael and Labour have recently called for the Dáil to be reconvened early for a debate on Shannon and the possibility of war.
