{"id":528297,"date":"2026-07-01T22:10:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T22:10:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/528297\/"},"modified":"2026-07-01T22:10:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T22:10:09","slug":"ready-to-give-our-all-ireland-begins-its-six-month-eu-presidency-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/528297\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Ready to give our all\u2019: Ireland begins its six-month EU presidency \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cNow that the starting whistle has blown, we are ready to give it our all,\u201d Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin<\/a> said, welcoming European Council president Ant\u00f3nio Costa <\/a>to Government Buildings at the first official engagement of Ireland\u2019s six-month EU<\/a> presidency.<\/p>\n

Martin pledged to work to make Europe<\/a> more secure and competitive, while promoting the EU\u2019s values, enhancing its competitiveness and working to accelerate the enlargement of the union. He also said Ireland would seek to conclude the EU\u2019s next budget settlement by the end of the year. <\/p>\n

Costa, the former Portuguese prime minister and head of the the European Council, which is the EU\u2019s most important decision-making body, said Ireland was \u201cthe right presidency in the right time\u201d.<\/p>\n

In response to questions, Martin played down concerns that Ireland as a neutral country and one with \u201clow defence spending\u201d could promote the strengthening of the EU\u2019s defence during its presidency. <\/p>\n

He said countries on the EU\u2019s \u201ceastern flank … see an existential threat to their way of life, from the threatening behaviour of Russia<\/a>, the invasion of Ukraine <\/a>… which many people in this part of the world wouldn\u2019t have that same experience. And it\u2019s important that we communicate that to our own people, that is how Baltics and indeed Poland and others see this. So we\u2019re very conscious of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said Ireland was \u201cconstructive at all times\u201d on European security.<\/p>\n

\"EuropeanEuropean Council president Ant\u00f3nio Costa during a ceremony to mark the launch of Ireland’s eighth EU presidency at Dublin Castle. Photograph: Paul Faith\/AFP via Getty Images <\/p>\n

Costa said: \u201cOf course, Nato is the key element of European security and defence. But European security and defence goes beyond Nato<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both men pointed to the negotiation of the next EU budget as a key priority for the Irish presidency. While hopes are high the presidency can conclude an agreement on the next budget, Martin struck a cautious note, saying only that Government would work \u201cto advance negotiations on the next multiannual budget, ideally, to secure agreement by the end of the year\u201d.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, at the official ceremony at Dublin Castle to launch the presidency, Martin was joined by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was a special guest of the Government. <\/p>\n

The Government has said it will make fast-tracking the war torn country\u2019s access to the union a priority of its presidency. <\/p>\n

Turning to Zelenskiy, Martin said: \u201cWe will stand unswervingly by the people of Ukraine, inspired by their courage and determined to ensure that they get the peace and justice they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Ukraine refused Irish offer of vehicles due to refurbishment costs, Zelenskiy saysOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Zelenskiy said Moscow \u201cwould not stop the war simply because someone asks it to\u201d. Russian leader Vladimir Putin needed to face conditions that made it \u201cimpossible\u201d for Russia to keep fighting, he said. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe are doing everything we can to make the occupation unbearable for the occupier,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

\"VolodymyrVolodymyr Zelenskiy, president of Ukraine, addressing the opening ceremony at Dublin Castle to mark the start of Ireland’s EU presidency. Photograph: Alan Betson<\/p>\n

He has said the defence technologies developed by Ukraine can be of vital assistance in bolstering European defence in the future. <\/p>\n

\u201cEvery country needs the modern means to at least monitor and protect its own air space and sea borders … Without Ukraine\u2019s experience and security expertise tested in modern war, it is simply impossible to guarantee security today, especially when it comes to air defence and maritime security. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat is why I invite all Europe to work together as closely as possible with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said every possible step should be taken to make it harder for Russia to continue the war. <\/p>\n

He said he hoped the EU accession negotiations would move quickly during the next six months and thanked Ireland for standing beside the people of Ukraine. <\/p>\n

In his address, Martin also said Ireland is proud it has become a \u201cbeacon of hope to others for the transformative potential of the European ideal\u201d.<\/p>\n

He honed in on the part Ireland has played in developing the union since first joining the partnership in 1973. He highlighted its presidency in 2004, which saw the EU\u2019s biggest expansion with the addition of 10 new member states. <\/p>\n

He said that through the EU, all the states were stronger together, <\/p>\n

\u201cN\u00ed neart go cur le ch\u00e9ile,\u201d (there is no strength without unity), he said. <\/p>\n

\"ToluTolu Makay and Colm Mac Con lomaire performing at Dublin Castle in Dublin, during the opening ceremony of Ireland’s EU presidency. Photograph: Alan Betson <\/p>\n

In his ceremony address, Costa commended how Ireland had been to the \u201cforefront\u201d of efforts to uphold Europe\u2019s values, which he said \u201cmust guide our work for peace and security in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Iran, the Strait of Hormuz, and across the wider Middle East\u201d.<\/p>\n

The event was attended by two former taoisigh, Bertie Ahern and Enda Kenny, the Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly and Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieut Gen Rossa Mulcahy. <\/p>\n

T\u00e1naiste Simon Harris, Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee and Minister of State for European Affairs Thomas Byrne accompanied the leaders to the podium, located in the courtyard of the castle. <\/p>\n

Amhr\u00e1n na bhFiann and the European Union\u2019s anthem, Beethoven\u2019s Ode to Joy, were performed by the Defence Forces Band and the Dublin Youth Choir. The event was hosted by actor Carrie Crowley. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cNow that the starting whistle has blown, we are ready to give it our all,\u201d Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":527708,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,7038,43],"class_list":["post-528297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-irish-politics","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528297","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=528297"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528297\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/527708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=528297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=528297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=528297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}