Ireland's neutrality and european security policy integration

The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the impact, if any, increased European Security Policy Integration has had, and continues to have, on Ireland‟s traditional policy of military neutrality and its survivability. The thesis takes a qualitative approach in assessing the existence of this phenomenon. Analyses of „Ireland‟s Neutrality‟, „European Security Policy‟, and „Domestic Perceptions of Irish Neutrality‟ have led to the conclusion that any supposed effect of European Security Policy Integration on Ireland‟s neutrality status is negligible. Furthermore, the existence of a „neutral identity‟ as part of the overall „Irish identity‟, was found to be one of the strongest determinants of the indomitability of Ireland‟s neutrality.