Thousands of declassified documents are being released this week from the archives of Dublin, Belfast and London, bringing new insight into Irish events, politics and personalities of times past.
Dublin’s archival material focuses mostly on documents which have turned 30 years old this year, centring on 1994. Here are eight things we learned from the State Papers.
1. Bertie Ahern overruled objections to continue weapons purchases from Israel in 1990s
Ireland continued to purchase ammunition from Israel despite “strong reservations” from then minister for foreign affairs David Andrews. The then minister for finance Bertie Ahern overruled Mr Andrews, who argued that Ireland should…