 In 1939–40, Germany attempted to infiltrate spies into the UK by way of Éire, but these attempts consistently failed (see Operation Lobster and Operation Seagull).During the period 1939–43, German intelligence, the "Abwehr" made attempts to foster intelligence-gathering links with the Irish Republican Army (IRA), but found that the IRA was in no condition to be of serious use.IRA members such as Francis Stuart did travel to Germany for discussions, although these were largely ineffectual.