The Minister for Defence Simon Coveney has said discussions are at an advanced stage on the establishment of an independent review into how the Defence Forces deal with allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination and bullying.
In a statement this morning, the minister said the terms of the review would be finalised this week.
Deputy Chief of Staff Major General Seán Clancy said today that the Defence Forces would fully support, facilitate and co-operate with any review or investigation to address the issues raised in a recent RTÉ documentary on the matter.
"Members of our organisation have the right to be treated with dignity and respect in the workplace and we are committed to ensuring that all personnel are provided with a safe working environment," he said.
The Defence Forces also said it wanted to "commend the bravery of the women who recently came forward and recounted their negative experiences while serving in the Defence Forces".
It said: "Óglaigh na hÉireann welcomes and fully supports the announcement made by Minister Coveney this morning that an independent review will be established to examine current policies and procedures dealing with workplace issues such as harassment, sexual harassment, bullying and discrimination."
Yesterday, opposition parties called on the Government to set up an independent inquiry into the allegations.
The calls follow an investigation broadcast by RTÉ Radio One on Saturday, revealing a series of allegations relating to conduct within the Defence Forces.
Titled Women of Honour, the programme detailed the experiences of former female members and included accounts from women who spoke of incidents of alleged sexual abuse.
The General Secretary of the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers said any sort of holistic review into reports of harassment in the Defence Forces is to be welcomed by the Defence Forces.
Commandant Conor King said this is the first time he has heard of such a review and urged the Minister not to forget about the representative groups who, he said, have raised concerns over a number a years over a lack of mentoring, supervision and the risk this poses to governance that exists in the Defence Forces.
He told RTÉ's Morning Ireland that where there is a lack of mentoring and supervision, there must be a risk for this type of behaviour to occur.
Commandant King said all members have signed up to the Defence Forces Dignity charter and the type of treatment highlighted in the Women of Honour documentary on RTÉ Radio One on Saturday is unacceptable.
"It seems there have been incidences where people have attempted to either report, or to speak to someone and it has been perhaps suppressed and that's just not acceptable."
"'Me too', is an international phenemonon," he said, and no one can expect the Defence Forces of Ireland to be immune from it.
He added that he cannot understand why anyone in power would suppress or ignore a complaint and that misogynistic or bullying or harassment type behavior should be weeded out and punished.
He described the documentary as a difficult listen and praised the bravery of the women who came forward.
"A lot of good could come out of this if it is treated with the respect it deserves."
Commandant King said structures have been in place since 2001 when these issues were first highlighted by Tom Clonan.
However the independent monitoring group has not sat since 2014, he said, and it would be timely now for it to be reinstated.
The Women of Honour group released a statement this afternoon calling for a "wholly independent external commission of inquiry".
"We note the minister's intention to include these issues in the current IMG report (Independent Monitoring Group) and we strongly disagree with the minister's intention to include the Women of Honour issues as an 'add on' to this report.
"Women of Honour are seeking a wholly independent external commission of inquiry and believe that this request is entirely justified.
"Furthermore, it will be necessary for the minister to include us, the entire Women of Honour Group and the representative associations of serving members, to be a part of setting the terms of reference for such an inquiry," said the statement.
Security analyst Dr Tom Clonan said it is "absolutely essential" that the Women of Honour, are at the centre of the design of the inquiry.
A doctoral thesis by former soldier Dr Clonan 21 years ago revealed bullying, sexual harassment and sexual assault against female soldiers within the Defence Forces.
Speaking on RTÉ's Drivetime this afternoon, Dr Clonan said he welcomed the announcement of an independent inquiry but he said he has some concerns about this morning's statement issued by the Department of Defence, and the Minister, when they said they were at an advanced stage of appointing nominees to an inquiry.
He said: "By what mechanism were people given an opportunity to express an interest in participating; by what mechanism were these nominations advertised; by what process were they interviewed?"
Dr Clonan said "it is absolutely essential that the Women of Honour be at the centre of the design of this new, independent inquiry".
"They have to be part of the design of its scope, of its parameters and they have to be in the room, centrally involved in the nomination of the independent investigation authority and those people that are going to participate in it," added Dr Clonan.
The Women of Honour documentary is available on the RTÉ Radio Player.
