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“HARASSMENT, FALSE ACCUSATIONS, defamation and threats.”
These are just some of the serious issues faced by election observers on the frontline in defending the democratic process, according to Mary Lawlor, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders.
“Some have even been killed while carrying out their work,” she told us, all while doing “very important work to try and ensure democratic elections” are respected.
Irish observers have as valuable a role as any other country in this process, with a 200-strong roster ready to answer the call from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
The transparency of our observer selection process, however, has come under scrutiny. Concerns over who is on our roster and how they are selected for missions have been raised through multiple public information requests and parliamentary questions.
Over the past two months, we scrutinised the State’s observer system – crunching years of open-source data on election missions and speaking to international experts. We found:
Yesterday, we showed how Ireland was an outlier in its decision to stop sending election observers at the height of the Covid pandemic.
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Observers are deployed by either the EU or the OSCE to polling stations to monitor the voting and counting process. The OSCE is a security organisation with 57 members, including Ireland, who work “for stability, peace and democracy”.
Some observers are also deployed on more complex, longer missions to ensure election laws are followed and analyse local political environments.
They can uncover wrongdoing, including voter suppression and ballot-box stuffing. Harald Hartvig Jepsen, a senior adviser with the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) told Noteworthy that he remembers a team observing “38 cases of outright ballot box stuffing” during one election.
In an age of ideological polarisation and disinformation, observers also play a key role in ensuring fair election results are accepted, according to Therese Pearce-Laanela, head of electoral processes at the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA).
“Defending an election result that is valid, that can be trusted [is important], and that’s why countries like Ireland are really taking their rosters and who they send out very seriously,” she said.
Ireland’s volunteer observers come from our near 200-strong security-vetted and trained roster managed by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Who is selected to become an observer and participate in missions has been the subject of a series of information requests, legal appeals, parliamentary questions (PQs) and questions from MEPs.
Questions arose after the introduction of a smaller roster in 2013 and a new competency-based assessment process to select observers every five years.
Before this, the roster was larger but was selected on a relatively ad-hoc basis, according to the Department, with no formal process for deactivating membership. A subsequent DFA review found the new assessment model delivered “a fair outcome and value for money”.
Following concerns over these changes, a subsequent DFA review found this assessment model delivered “a fair outcome and value for money”.
According to the Department, the volume of information requests after the new roster system was implemented impacted the team’s work. For example, staff cancelled annual leave or worked outside normal hours in order “to draft responses”.
A total of 139 PQs were received between 2013 and 2019, according to DFA. More recently in October 2022, People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs for the names of each person nominated as observers since 2019. The Minister refused to provide names of roster members.
The Department’s roster data privacy notice states it retains members’ names and missions attended. For as long as it has maintained the roster, member names have “formed part of the public record” to demonstrate “accountability and transparency”.
Yet, DFA refuses to release names of current members citing data protection and GDPR. It refused requests from Noteworthy, members of the public and multiple PQs on these grounds.
Other countries take a similar stance, with a number of government spokespersons across Europe telling us they keep observer names confidential and do not release personal details. The EU also told us observer details “cannot be disclosed on grounds of their right to personal data protection”.
GDPR has applied since May 2018. Before this, the Department did release details of members. Current roster members continue to be listed in public OSCE reports for each election mission.
By combining these two publicly available data sources, together with LinkedIn postings, we identified almost 190 observers that went on missions over the past decade.
Our analysis shows many members come from legal, military and human rights backgrounds. A small number of roster members hail from politics, including councillors and senators.
As politicians have stood for elections, they add credibility and bring “particular expertise in political campaigns and electoral processes” to election observation missions, according to the OSCE.
Another concern raised is that some observers may be repeatedly nominated for missions. This concern is compounded as the nominees picked by DFA are not published.
When the EU or OSCE put out a call for observers, roster members can apply to DFA to be put forward as one of Ireland’s nominee observers for the mission.
A DFA spokesperson said that it is not responsible for the final selection of observers on missions as those are picked by the EU or OSCE. While the EU has final say on selection, the OSCE told us that it “merely accepts” the nominees put forward by countries.
One of the Department’s key criteria for nominating observers for missions includes length of time since the observer’s last mission and rotation within the roster.
Our analysis of OSCE mission logs show over 30 observers went on at least four missions each over the last decade. Many have military or peacekeeping experience, legal backgrounds, or have worked abroad with international organisations.
Some also speak important mission languages such as French, Spanish or Russian, and one is a former politician who speaks multiple languages.
One observer went on seven missions, four went on six each, and seven went on five each. A further 20 observers went on four missions apiece. The top 20 observers (10% of Ireland’s roster) account for 25% of all spots, with some going on missions several years in a row.
A Department spokesperson told us, as it only receives applications for some missions from roster members previously nominated and deployed, “it is not feasible” to achieve a completely balanced rotation of the roster.
Since 2019, no candidate has been deployed on more than three missions and only 11% have served more than once since 2019, they said. In addition, 18% of the roster have never applied for a mission and a further 25% have applied very infrequently – twice or fewer since 2019.
The Department must also prioritise EU and OSCE requirements for the mission ahead of rotation criteria. This can influence the repeat selection of some observers. The spokesperson said this “is an extremely important element that cannot be overlooked”.
Nine other European countries told us that they follow a similar model in aiming to balance their roster but without setting any upper mission limit. Sweden, for example, gives preference to those who have not observed for a long time but has no annual limit.
Norway seeks to rotate its roster but can send the same observer to more than one mission each year. Denmark and Switzerland consider experience but have no set limit either.
Our analysis of over 9,000 OSCE observer places since 2013 shows many countries send repeat observers. Some observers from Germany, Switzerland, the UK and Russia went on between 10 and 15 missions each during this period. Observers from various other countries, including several EU countries, went on between six and nine missions.
The gender profile of those nominated for missions is another detail often requested through parliamentary questions. Both the EU and OSCE request a fair gender balance among nominated candidates from each country.
The Department’s current roster pool has more men (55%). This is an improvement as the 2013-2018 roster was almost two-thirds male (64.5%).
Some countries we contacted have a majority of women on their roster. Sweden’s roster is made up of 57% women. Norway’s is 65% women and “always seeks to send or nominate an equal number” of both sexes.
Department data shows that women account for almost half (48%) of nominees since 2019. This “highlights our commitment to gender balance”, a DFA spokesperson said. This commitment is further affirmed, they added, by the fact that there were just 42.5% women applicants from the current roster.
EU data released to Noteworthy also shows almost half of Irish nominees (48%) were women. When selecting observers, one of the EU’s key objectives is to “ensure gender balance among the selected observers for the mission as a whole”, according to a spokesperson.
Our analysis shows that more men were selected for OSCE missions, accounting for almost 60% of Irish observers selected since 2019 from the current roster. OSCE data from this period released to our team shows that 56% of the 7,250 observers from all countries were men.
When we crunched the public data on over 9,000 OSCE observer places since 2013, Ireland had the third highest male representation among EU countries.
Other issues relating to roster diversity are ongoing. Earlier this month, Fine Gael TD Richard Bruton asked if the Department would consider adding disabled people to the roster “as has been recommended by an Oireachtas Committee”.
In reply, Minister of State Seán Fleming said that expressions of interest for the next roster were being accepted and that the “Department is committed to ensuring” Ireland’s roster provides for the participation of disabled people.
The current roster is set to run until the end of this year. Expressions of interest for the next one were being accepted up to last Friday.
The concerns raised over the past number of years not only helped to highlight Irish transparency and administrative issues, but influenced the decision to review the management of the observer roster system released in 2021.
Although the internal DFA review found the roster selection process was “transparent, fair and carried out to a high standard”, it raised key administrative issues that needed to be addressed.
It issued 18 recommendations to enable Ireland to make a “better contribution” through election observation missions. Eight are ongoing, with 10 now complete.
The core recommendation outlined the need to create and implement a transparency request policy for repeated similar Freedom of Information (FOI) or GDPR requests. Guidelines are now in place for the Department’s FOI or data protection officer to support the team in handling such requests.
Another issue was the workload for the small team that had “no guiding authority or internal support available… all the while operating within a context of intense political scrutiny”.
The Department said it met with the Public Appointments Service (PAS) last April about managing the next roster application process. While the PAS is not in a position to manage the entire process, it is exploring the option of providing assistance to DFA’s team.
DFA has also completed recommendations for improved planning and engagement with the EU and OSCE about upcoming missions to ensure a better observer nomination and selection process. A more in-depth training plan will also come into effect for the next roster.
International IDEA’s Therese Pearce-Laanela said that “what is critical” to the mission is the “overarching reasoning” when choosing which observers to send.
“The Irish volunteer programme is excellent at taking people and growing their skill sets,” she added. “That’s why Ireland punches above its weight.”
“But you don’t use the observation mission as your way to build your skill sets or give people a chance. That’s not what it’s about. It has to be about the mission and getting the right people for the job,” Pearce-Laanela said.
This appears to be a concern shared by some Irish observers. An observer who has taken part in multiple missions told us that roster rotation is important. But they felt it should not take precedence over core mission criteria or in-country observer knowledge obtained through previous missions.
Harald Hartvig Jepsen of IFES told us that his nation Denmark went through a similar issue where questions were raised about lack of roster transparency, including why “some observe several missions a year while some have zero”.
Jepsen said the concerns raised encouraged roster members to form an association, holding public meetings to explain the process. It also influenced greater State transparency on its roster selection criteria and how people are nominated for missions.
“The key here is communication, being open with statistics – not disclosing personal protected data but being open on how you select – and the challenges that you face in the selection process.”
Is Ireland playing its part in overseas election observation?
We also reveal Ireland was an outlier to stop sending observers during Covid
By Niall Sargent of Noteworthy
This investigation was proposed and funded by you, our readers. Noteworthy is the crowdfunded investigative journalism platform from The Journal.
Please support our work by submitting an idea, helping to fund a project or setting up a monthly contribution to our investigative fund HERE>>
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What a great leader Zelenskyy has proven to be. A never give up attitude against the so called might of Russia. Onwards towards victory.
@Paddy Ryan: one of the best people I’ve ever seen in the world
@Paddy Ryan: Delusional nonsense. He’s a tyrant who has sent hundreds of thousands of innocent young men to their deaths
@RP McGuinness: Trolling used to be an art. This is 2nd hand etch-a-sketch. Brutal effort.
@RP McGuinness: He’s no tyrant, just a corrupt, naive puppet of the good auld CIA.
@RP McGuinness: I see you ingest the sperm of Vlad, good man.
@RP McGuinness: I don’t know, I’d maybe blame the person who starts a war for that rather than the person who’s defending against it and is having to make the difficult decision of trying to pursue a long lasting victory vs not letting his people keep suffering.
@Housing Hunger Games: Agreed, but many of the Soviet leaders were from Ukraine or had Ukrainian roots.
@RP McGuinness: the thing here is, in the real world,… America and Europe defacto NATO are screaming for a ceasefire as Ukraine is getting whipped, the Kursk region was totally cleansed of Ukrainian Forces today, the last settlement of 22 they held was taken, now a mop up in surrounding forest and lone houses are being searched in the hunt for stragglers…
Wind back 2 years ago as we were told Russia was on it’s knees, now weapons, using chips from washing machines…
It’s how propaganda works, unfortunately, propaganda doesn’t win wars,
I absolutely GUARANTEE that if Russia was losing, and NATO wasn’t so desperate, there would be no call for peace, there would be a call for a march on Moscow and “Saddam” Putin,
Alas, this is the real world…
@Pat Barry: your right, and they were called the devil and communists by the west, the guy in charge during the Kennedy standoff with Cuba was Ukrainian,
That all kicked off because the US tried to put nuclear missiles in Turkey,.. it’s a fascinating history to Read about Geopolitics…the Soviet Union was a huge collection of what are now countries, yet Russia gets blamed for everything,
After the Soviet collapse in 1991, Russia took it on itself to repay the debt of EVERY country that was in the USSR ,
The last payment was in 2017,
This is factual, check it before I’m called a troll
Western propaganda is nuts
@John Darker: the fact of NATO creaping closer to Russian borders, causing this war, is the grandson of the standoff with Kennedy trying to put nuclear weapons close to the USSR, only with faster weapons and greater damage
….. Russia saw this coming, it’s why, under Putin, they made the best defense systems in the world, and hypersonic weapons NATO can’t track, including a weapon called the “Poseidon”.. a nuclear powered torpedo that dives deeper than anything NATO has, too fast catch and if one hit the white cliffs of Dover, we’ll be destroyed in a nuclear tidal wave 500′ high
@John Darker: What’s most odd about your comments ( aside from your inability to explain why you think it’s OK for Putin to invade a sovereign country) is your absolute indifference to the 900,000 Russians killed and injured for Putins psychopathic vanity – it’s all USA/NATO and other propaganda burps. You’re a lot like Putin in that regard, I suppose. The Ukrainian Armed Forces dispute your Kursk claim, btw. It is a difficult situation, but they’re still there fighting Russian ‘meatwaves’. Russia has lost just under 50% of the Ukrainian territory that they took after their invasion 3 years ago. Your gloating strikes me as a bit panicky. Nobody wants a march on Moscow. Everyone wants Putin to phuk off out of Ukraine. Park the paranoia. It only suits Putin.
@John Darker: Russian nuclear doctrine is, if an overwhelming force of missiles or attack forces are coming, they will release, they’re literally handling a defacto NATO force right now as far as logistics go, NATO using mercs, Ukrainians and their own specialist forces, yet they haven’t pressed any buttons, which means One thing, they’re coping easily, anyone remember the flex of the “Oreshnik” a weapon demonstrated once, came down looking like lightning in 7 places at once, Russia sent one last year, no explosives, kinetic energy of travelling at mach 9, buried deep and wrecked a NATO command center
@honey badger: lol, hello little stalker, you ready for another whipping?
@John Darker: The best defence system in the world? Is that why orders for Russian S400s have been cancelled as Ukrianian drones repeatedly turn Russian oil refineries and ammo depots into bonfires?
You sound like a dazed nazi talking up ‘wunderwaffe’. You’re only fooling yourself.
@John Darker: The “NATO command centre” turned out to be a munitions factory in Dnipro, which is still operational. You are you trying to fool here, aside from yourself?
@honey badger: waffle waffle waffle… it’s not affecting the real world,
Get off the Xbox, this is a good as over, I see the new Marod drone with a jet engine and AI to gather in a swarm 1.2 km out of range, then dive as a formation to overcome defenses saw kiev , the most defended city getting I hit in the factory that develops drones…. Ukraine hides factories in civilians, uses the post office 18 wheelers and vans to deliver ammunition and weapons… nasty war, but Russia knows how to fight a nasty war, that’s why NATO is chitting itself, they’ve never faced anything like it
@John Darker: Russia is on its knees John. Oil infrastructure in tatters big warehouse of missiles and ordinance went boom with doors open and train of kinzals after arriving. Putin is vying with Trump for the title of “most destructive to their own country” cry salty tears
@John Darker: 900,000 dead and injured Russians, and you’re here pulling the belly off yourself, describing Russias wunderwaffe. It’s actually hilarious and pathetic in equal measure.
Russia does know how to fight a nasty war, I’ll give you that. 2 million dead Afghanis know it. 400,000 dead Syrians know. Tens of thousands of dead Chechens, Georgians, Moldovans, and Ukrainians know that too.
I think of Mariupol, Bucha, & Izium in particular. You’re here excitedly supporting a paranoid madman and afraid of answering basic questions about that support. I think it’s you who is “chitting” themselves…
@honey badger: I’m a realist, not a Putinista, I don’t rely on emotional bullchit like you do, I’ve studied geopolitic for 50 years, your slava ukraini and calling Putin a psychopath isn’t gonna change reality, your lies about how it all started, cherry picking events for the Internet, isn’t going to change the real world, NATO is spent, the US has to pivot towards Iran and China now, and the EU can’t pick up the slack as it’s broke with no weapons, go out and touch grass ffs before you lose your last braincell
@honey badger: don’t reply to these trolls. The journal is swamped with Russian trolls. All bots unfortunately. Putin spreading his poison.
@John Darker: I’ve only presented you with facts and questioned your reasons for thinking that invading sovereign nations, kidnapping 19,000 Ukrainian children, etc, is fine. You can’t answer anything, it seems. After 50 years of studying, that seems like a poor return. You’re a typical putinista that folds and runs backwards, barking loudly when under basic scrutiny. Don’t forget to clean yourself up.
@honey badger: the irony of you calling me a Nazi…as the country you support has 40 statues to Bandera, and hundreds of streets named after him, Bandera, the killer of Jews who created the SS Gallicia..a premium Nazi unit made up of Ukrainians from the West around Lviv…the ss Gallicia that guarded concentration camps,…
Some who escaped to Canada after the war where there is now statues in Canada, is why a Nazi was applauded in the Canadian Parliament… learn your history ya chump
@Paddy Ryan: You’re right, Paddy. I find it interesting to question why they support Putin though. Few can. Fewer still stand up to basic questions. It seems their cheat sheets don’t allow much latitude for them. :)
@honey badger: that was a munitions factory alright, but a Soviet built one, which Russia has all the blueprints for, they know about the facilities 30-40 deep, where NATO forces were meeting, hence the flex, the Soviet Union built EVERY factory in Ukraine and Russia holds all the blueprints, it’s why kinzhals, cruise missiles are used, this time they sent a message with the unarmed Oreshnik, it’s why NATO is chitting itself…
You need to wake up to reality as you’re becoming a joke
@John Darker: Why do you support the abduction of 19,000 children, John? Why do support the massacres of Mariupol, Bucha, & Izium? Your whatabouting isn’t much of a defence of anything, is it? A cowardly putinista. A laughing stock waving 50 years of study about with nothing to show for it.
@John Darker: Now now, John, what did I tell you about pulling the belly off yourself describing russias wunderwaffe? I’m still waiting for your justification of 900,000 dead Russians, several countries invaded, millions of dead and injured civilians, and 19,000 Ukrainian children abducted. Put the lotion down.
@honey badger: if you can’t see the reason for Russia to send an SMO into Ukraine with the creeping of NATO, then, you’re an idiot, by international law they have every right to protect their nation against a belligerent country, Ukraine is lucky that Russia hasn’t declared total war, they’re only using 25% of forces,
Rest are in reserve, your numbers of Russian dead is fantasy, seeing as they have a 10/1 in advantage in ground weapons including the TOS,,
meanwhile, last Thursday, public orbituries of soldiers in Ukraine reached 602,000, that’s not including injured which is a ratio of approx 5/1, Ukraine is on it’s third army… Russia is on it’s first.
@Justin Mcnulty: oil infrastructure in bits…you serious?
LMFAO
@honey badger: facts… Russia removes children from the battlefield that Ukraine left behind and tried to hide behind, of those children were important to Ukraine, they would have been evacuated probably to Ireland, but no, they were Russian speaking children, and Russia took them out of danger,
Your propaganda doesn’t bear fruit on reality, if Ukraine was worried about those kids, they wouldn’t have been in harms way,
Ukraine killed enough of those kids between 2014 and 2022, check out the “alley of angels” in the Donbass for Ukraine atrocities on their own citizen children they claim to care about
@John Darker: I’ll bring you to school on any propaganda you got honey, my little stalker
@Justin Mcnulty: LMFAO.. trains of kinzhals Don’t arrive by train , their an air carried missile like the Mig 31, Everytime mig 31 takes off, NATO satellites chits itself, and enr whole of Ukraine goes red on the radar, the fact you think a load of kinzhals got mangled shows how brainwashed you are, they are loaded a thousand kilometers away of not further
Jesus, do some research
@John Darker: Will you be explaining why you support russia or not? It’s fun watching you dance but I’d like an answer.
@Paddy Ryan: I’m far from a bot Paddy, you’re the Bot, brainwashed to think Ukraine can win this, and think you’re doing you’re bit by cheering it on in the journal comments..
What a phuckin idiot,
Anything said here doesn’t mean a thing, absolutely nothing with reality,
But have at it champ, watch another Ukrainian army die for the West
@honey badger: I’ve told you numerous times honey, I’m a realist, not a fantasist like yourself, Putin has had EVERY right and reason to go in and protect the Russian speaking people in Ukraine by international law …
He’ll go all the way and there’s nothing Ukraine or the US/ NATO can do about it
Ye had your chance with the Minsk agreements, but Merkel admitted that was to buy time to arm Ukraine, Russia won’t give the West a second chance, they’ve diversified their exports, Europe will be broken after it settles, Russia has beaten the collective West,
Europe, no resources… paying through the nose for american energy when it was a third of the price 3 years ago, heavy industry stagnating on Germany, Europe will be the big losers in all this
@John Darker: Oh ffs. Last chance. Why do you support all that ive listed. Not the cheatsheet gibberish. Your reasons. Put the lotion down please .
@honey badger: ” will you be explaining”….to you?
LMFAO hahahah, you’re nothing, absolutely nothing, I owe you no explanation on my view of reality .
Yer a phuckin clown on the Internet, that can only copy and paste from Wikipedia with no real input of your own, go out into the real world and experience it, then come back and have a chat
@honey badger: last chance…. LMFAO!!
I’ve already told you, I’m a realist, by international law, Putin is right to go on, precedent was set by Kosovo,…
By international law Putin is right, and I support him because he puts his countries borders paramount…and they’ll defend it against anyone, Russia didn’t lose 26 million people 80 years ago to surrender now, and it’s about time the West realises it, NATO and the US has forced Russia, Iran, China together, and it will be the end of western hegemony
@John Darker: the vice president of Canada is a granddaughter of a Nazi… easily verified
@John Darker: No. Russias’ invasion wasn’t legal under any international law. No precedent was set by kosovo. Stop pumping out lies. Your opinion isnt a fact. The UN general assembly condemned Russia, and there’s a warrant out for Putin from the ICC. Russia didn’t lose 26 million people in ww2 – the USSR did, but it shows your anti West mindset perfectly. You’re lost in history, same as Putin. The USSR is gone. It isn’t coming back. Your “NATO expansion” was former soviet satellite states looking for security. Add in Finland and Sweden recently, and you have Putin conjouring his own fears. You are, in fact, the diametric opposite of a realist. 50 wasted years. Poor you.
@John Darker: What has Canada got to do with anything here? You’re ranting now. The President of Russia is acting like a Nazi and deploying the same cynical paranoid Nazi rationale for invading sovereign states. He is only president today because he rigged votes and had opposition suppressed/ jailed. His position is based on elections that were neither free nor fair. I’d nearly pity you.
@honey badger: LMFAO haha… you’re delusional…
@honey badger: Why do you support another wanted war criminal and the genocide he is committing ,You’re just as bad as your man that is supporting putin,Russia and isreal are as bad as each,both leaders wanted war criminals.
Oh God well this won’t suit the Trump supporters. They spent weeks hammering Zelensky after his appearance in the white house. Now Trump is changing his tune are they going to change theirs as well
There couldn’t be a more fitting, more symbolic & beautiful way to commemorate the passing of our Holy Father than to finally wrap up that heinous conflict of mayhem, death & destruction that has stolen so many young Ukrainian & Russian lives these past 3 years of darkness. Let us hope & pray the ‘endgame’ is nearly upon us & we can start to rebuild
@Mary Linton: Let us hope so!
@Mary Linton: so much for your “ it will be over in 24 hours”. Trumps only card turned out to be surrender surrender. Traitor.
@Mary Linton: The guy was relatively progressive for a deeply regressive institution. We’ll give him that. Is he really your ‘Holy Father’ though? Could it be that he’s a normal dude, with massive celebrity and he’s gone exactly nowhere except the place we all do? Honestly, in 2025 with a world of evidence, mass and detailed debunking of superstition- is it not far more likely that he’s just died like everyone else? How likely is the whole heaven thing? There’s a logic deep within us that says we have made this stuff to try and deal with a widespread inability to cope with the idea that we pop up, get our turn and then make way for the next generations never to be seen again. I’ve watched some of it today and there hasn’t been a single thing that’s convinced me anything other than a very glam funeral is happening. Much like royal coronations there’s only so much logic the pomp can distract you from.
@Mary Linton: Unfortunately there are so many other conflicts in the world, many of which we hear little or nothing about. There has always war and probably always will be due to man’s greed.
@SerotoninWars: hey man, I’m critical of organised religion and am atheist as well, but it’s pretty rude to go up to someone unannounced like that and start what is essentially preaching to them. Not only are you not convincing anyone, you’re being kinda antagonistic. The original comment is saying “here’s this guy who died who stood for these values. It is poetic that after his death, this issue seems closer to resolving”. Let’s focus on that, okay?
@Fishlord “Fishlord_Username” Username: Much like royal coronations, there’s a blanket conformity and company line that takes over during events like this. There’s very little in the way of pushback or debate when one incredible claim after another is made to the public. This is a public forum and we’re allowed to question and discuss these things. The poster I replied to has no problem stirring it up when it suits them. We’re all well able to handle a question or two. If not, getting off the net is a good idea. Being questioned about sweeping statements is par for the course and about as standard as it gets interacting below the line. Questions and doubts are always good. They’re a sign of a functioning human intellect we can all avail of as we decide what to believe in life.
Guess which self centered moron wore blue when it was black attire
@Blues Brother: Does he even own a black suit? I’m sure Fox News, Newsmax and AON will press him on this.
@Blues Brother: For once I might be leaning towards standing up for Trump (shudder). A suit is a suit and it won’t make the blindest bit of difference to anyone except the most easily offended. However, he loses his free pass for the way they treated Zelensky for not showing up in a suit and tie at the White House. It was bullying plain and simple. So disrespectful towards a man desperately trying to navigate the survival of his country. That kind of facepalm conformity over a bunch of material was daft beyond belief. As if Zelensky hadn’t enough to be worrying about. They’re all about the strictest of conformity until it comes to all of things they wish to trample and destroy. Either way today was a daft day for the rational and sticklers for actual evidence. It’s quite amazing that in age where we can test for and find evidence for so many things we’re left with faith. You have to wonder how many really possess it and how many are hedging their bets, just in case.
@Blues Brother: Michael Martin?
When The Bronzer talks about a deal he means outright surrender. He doesn’t have any cards. The only one playing is Putin.
@smatrix mantra: Traitor Trump, his only call is to surrender all of Ukrainian land captured. He’s like the French, surrender surrender
@Housing Hunger Games: remind us again what Dunkirk was all about
@offside again: I’m not responsible for your education of history. That’s on you.
@Housing Hunger Games: Stupid comment about the French. Not a clue.
@offside again: For once we’re in agreement. Clueless in fairness. Watching too much British propaganda. The usual nonsense these days.
@Housing Hunger Games: that’s a relief. Here’s a short lesson : the Germans completey overran the English and French armies. The English had a Channel to escape across.
When your defeated, you surrender. Have a read about the battle of Verdun, and German descriptions of the ferocity of thier French foes.
@offside again: No to mention The Resistance.
@Louis Jacob: the gestapo tortured parisians by filing their teeth.the Russians will crush your balls with pliers. Humans are horrible. I’ve had a life long dispute witt God ; if it’s such an all loving forgiving all powerful entity, then something has gone badly wrong. The truth might be is that humans have the power to shape this world and well ; yeah, what can I say ?
We’re doing so well !
You’d wonder if there’s more than the eyes can see. There might be some kind of destiny. Maybe we have to get it so wrong before we decide getting it right might be a good idea.
I honestly believe the Irish love life and the craic. Taking the piss is a national passtime..
The Bretons have a problem with the French republic. Their language was suppressed like ours. But I prefer to be apart of a bigger nation. France is actually many different countries.
No united Ireland without being a proper republic first.
Great bunch of lads sorting out a peace deal after the funeral lol does anybody reading these articles really believe these 3 card trick men are going to make an iota of difference to the inevitable outcome
@The Hard Road: What’s the inevitable outcome?
Is Russia going to settle for the territories they already occupy and is Ukraine going to accept this? Or are they going to want more of Ukraine and/or The Baltic States?
Is Europe going to become energy independent and slowly cripple Russia economically or not?
What’s going to happen to all the dirty Russian money in French and German banks?
What will happen when Putin Resigns and what will his successor be like?
We’re all interested to know, and you seem to know all the answers.
@Seamus Enright: Crimea will be the settling point Putin is a hard Ba…… but the peace will be gained the usual bombing campaign before they settle this
war, like the huge Omagh atrocity, to settle it all
terrible but it happened while they were working out a deal.
Ukraine will never surrender their sovereign land, Traitor Trump
@Housing Hunger Games: they won’t get to decide thanks to Zelensky
Amazing photo two leaders deciding the worlds future and thousands of lives saved, while sitting on simple chairs and small table, in humble setting in the Vatican City, history in the making right there while a pope is laid to rest, how could you plan this inspirational setting.
@Phillip Smyth: Theatre: The only thing Trump is any good at.
@Phillip Smyth: The table is so small that you can’t even see it!
@Diarmuid Hunt:
@Phillip Smyth: I wouldn’t consider the Vatican as a humble setting
Could it be that Trump is finally beginning to realise that Putin has been playing him all along?
@lesidees: that man hasn’t the wit or self awareness to come to such a conclusion
It’s all one big show
@martin lawlor: very hard to bring everyone together when multiple realities exist
@Shaun: Point being Shaun , which reality is real?
Wow a few photos and the world is convinced about brotherhood sure let’s have a kings speech and that will top it
@Shaun: it goes on and on and on and on and on and on … ad ifinitum …
Let’s hope President Trump makes the Ukrainian scammers pay a large price
It must be galling for Zelensky, who appears a very intelligent man, to have to dumb down his conversation to a level comprehendible by the orange ape.
@Andrew Speers: coke head comedian! Your level of “very intelligent” isn’t Stephen hawking IQ I see..
have your say