A huge shipment of military equipment has arrived back in Dublin from Chad, two months after Irish soldiers withdrew from the central African peace mission.
The consignment contained 3,000 tonnes of equipment including 75 armoured vehicles, 4x4s and trucks. It was shipped from Douala in Cameroon.
Minister for Defence Tony Killeen and Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sean McCann were at Dublin Port to observe the return of the equipment.
It was the final phase of a major logistics operation that began in April following a Government decision to begin the drawdown of Irish troops from Chad.
The mission to Chad represented one of the most challenging logistical operations ever undertaken by the Irish Defence Forces, as it has little or no infrastructure.
General McCann said the successful Chad deployment and recovery of all necessary equipment to facilitate the conduct of operations in one of the most remote areas of the world, is testament to the expeditionary skills of the Defence Forces.
The equipment will be moved to the National Stores Reception Centre (NSRC) in the Curragh, from where it will undergo a programme of refurbishment and preparation.
With the recent withdrawal of troops from Chad and the Balkans, the Defence Forces are not involved in any major peacekeeping formation abroad for the first time in 30 years.
However, 173 Defence Forces personnel remain deployed overseas in 17 different headquarters/mission areas.
160 Defence Forces personnel are currently in training for participation in the EU Nordic Battle Group which will remain on standby from January to July 2011 for short-notice deployments around the world.
