Fuente : UK Government
http://www.open.gov.uk/

UK: SECURITY NORMALISATION IN NORTHERN IRELAND - STATEMENT BY DEFENCE SECRETARY JOHN REID

/noticias.info/
The first steps in moving the Armed Forces in Northern Ireland towards its eventual peacetime garrison were announced today by the Ministry of Defence.

Defence Secretary John Reid said:

"I pay tribute to the dedication and sacrifice of all those Service men and women and civilians who have served in Northern Ireland over the past thirty-six years and I welcome the programme of security normalisation announced today by Peter Hain. The Armed Forces will continue to support the police for as long as the Chief Constable requires, but we also look forward to the time, now clearly in sight, when such support is no longer needed.

"We will press on quickly with implementing normalisation measures on the ground now."

The eventual peacetime garrison will be no more than 5,000 Armed Forces Personnel who will be available for worldwide operations. A plan for the phased reduction of personnel will be published as soon as is practicable and further announcements will follow.

The three Home Service battalions of The Royal Irish Regiment were raised to support the police in countering terrorism under Operation BANNER. When the police no longer require routine military support, Operation BANNER will end and with it the role of the Home Service battalions. There is no military requirement for such units after the end of Operation BANNER. The Government has therefore decided that they will disband at that point. Northern Ireland political parties have been asked for their views on how to address the implications of normalisation on the Royal Irish Home Service.

The General Service Battalion (The 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment) and the Territorial Army element (The Royal Irish Rangers) which operate world-wide in the same way as any other units of the British Army, are unaffected and will carry on regimental traditions.

Notes to Editors

1. The Northern Ireland Office has today published details of the security normalisation measures. The principal measures are:

* a start has been made on the vacation and closure of Forkhill base in South Armagh and on;
* the removal of the super sangar at Newtownhamilton police station;
* work has begun today on the removal of the observation post at Divis Tower in Belfast and the two observation towers at Masonic in Londonderry will be removed;
* a structured plan for the phased reduction in troops to peacetime levels will be published by the MOD in due course;
* three towers in South Armagh will be successively removed: at R12 (Sugarloaf Hill near Camlough), G10 (Creevekeeran near Crossmaglen) and G20 (Drummuckavall near Crossmaglen). Demolition work on R12 has already commenced and work on the other towers will start today. Demolition and returning to Greenfield sites will take approximately 6 months in total. Once complete, these steps will enable a reduction in routine military helicopter activity.

2. General Sir Michael Walker, Chief of the Defence Staff, and Sir Kevin Tebbit, Permanent Secretary issued a joint message to the General Officer Commanding (Northern Ireland), Lt Gen Sir Reddy Watt. GOC(NI) issued a message to the personnel under his command. The messages are available at http://www.news.mod.uk

3. Op BANNER is the operational name for the Armed Forces' support to the Police Service of Northern Ireland in counter-terrorism and public order operations to assist the Government in its objective of restoring normality in Northern Ireland.

4. The Royal Irish Regiment was formed in July 1992, following the merger of the Ulster Defence Regiment and the Royal Irish Rangers. The Home Service Battalions were raised specifically for Op BANNER and serve only in Northern Ireland.

5. The Defence Secretary wrote today to the leaders of the political parties in Northern Ireland seeking their views on the arrangements the MOD will make for members of the Royal Irish Regiment (Home Service).

6. As at 30 June 2005 there were full-time 2000 and 1190 part-time regular soldiers in three Home Service battalions.


Client ref 156/2005

GNN ref 119061P notas_de_prensa_archivo