Ireland Commits €1.7 Billion to Defence, Its Largest Military Investment Ever

Minister Helen McEntee launched Ireland's Defence Sectoral National Development Plan 2026-2030, allocating €1.7 billion in capital funding—a 55% jump from the €1.1 billion baseline. The five-year program scales from €300 million in 2026 to €360 million by 2030, up sharply from €141 million in 2022. Despite this expansion, Ireland remains Europe's lowest defence spender at 0.2% of GDP, reflecting decades of constrained military budgets.