Minister for Transport Martin Cullen had done "nothing inappropriate" in New York in welcoming US troops back from Iraq, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern told the Dáil.
He rejected Green Party criticism that it was "stomach churning" that Mr Cullen attended a wreath-laying ceremony by the Fighting 69th brigade on March 16th, after allegations that US troops killed innocent children in Iraq.
Mr Ahern said the Minister had been invited by the Fighting 69th regiment, "the US army unit with the closest ties to Irish America", to attend the ceremony. The regiment's battle flag was "presented to the Irish nation by president JFK when he addressed the Houses of the Oireachtas in 1963", the Taoiseach added. It is on permanent public display in Leinster House.
The regiment "has led the St Patrick's Day parade up Fifth Avenue in New York every year for more than 150 years, so the Minister did nothing inappropriate". The ceremony was at the Fr Duffy statue at Times Square, a memorial to an Irish priest who worked in Manhattan in the 19th century.
Green Party leader Trevor Sargent condemned the Minister's attendance at the ceremony, after reports that the US military was investigating allegations that troops shot dead a family of 11 last week, and killed 15 civilians in another town last year, which led to a criminal inquiry being established last week.
"In light of that, will you agree it is stomach churning to read about the Minister Martin Cullen doing a nixer for the Minister for Defence by heading off with Irish troops to New York to welcome back US troops from Iraq," Mr Sargent asked the Taoiseach.
"Will you at least admit that it was ill-judged? Without even blushing the Minister, deputy Cullen, said it was an honour to represent the Government? What is the Taoiseach's position on such an obvious double standard? Isn't this the clearest indication yet that you fully support US policy in Iraq?" He said it was "time finally to condemn the killing of innocent children in Iraq and to end the facilitation of the movement of US troops through Shannon airport, given those atrocities".
But Mr Ahern said he would "condemn the killing of anyone anywhere" and insisted that "we are not assisting the killers. There are no Irish troops in Iraq".
