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Action
BY WESLEY BOURKE PHOTOGRAPHS BY A/SEA DAVID JONES
Stations!
A
s an island nation the sea is vital to Ireland's secu- rity, and also to its economic wellbeing given that 92% of trade in and out of Ireland is by sea.
These trade routes need to be policed and protected. Our waters also include many valuable state assets such as fish stocks, gas and oil, which all need protection too. In addition, we need to prevent our territorial waters from being used for criminal activities such as arms-, drug-, and human-trafficking, bearing in mind that the crews of such vessels can be armed and belligerent. The Naval Service
is the only armed state body policing our waters and is therefore the foremost agency responsible for patrolling and protecting our seas and their resources. The weapons on Irish Naval Service ships, while primarily
there as a deterrent, are important in the Naval Service's role in protecting our territorial waters. One of the big- gest challenges faced by all maritime agencies around the world today is drug interdiction; it is a constant global battle in which the Naval Service plays its part. Drug cartels will do anything to get their narcotics through and
THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE
