Diplomatic Representation
Dail Éireann — 2026-10-01
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Barry Ward (FG), Dún Laoghaire

I thank the Minister of State and I agree with what he said about our missions on the ground. They provide consistent, excellent service to Irish citizens there and here because of the work they do. The Minister of State mentioned trade and there is also cultural engagement, the presence on the ground and increasing the profile of Ireland in these countries.
I also recognise what the Minister of State said about the excellent work done by ambassadors who have responsibility, on a non-resident basis, for countries such as Montenegro, North Macedonia and Albania. I recognise how much work they do. I also take on board what the Minister of State said about this being under review and the principle that if and when these countries become members of the European Union, it will, hopefully, be a priority to open embassies there.
There is no lack of contact with those countries, and when their delegations come here to meet the European affairs committee or to meet me, as Chair of the committee, they constantly say there is contact with the Irish Government, but we must consider maintaining our connection to accession. When we think of it, we were not only part of the first accession but also key to the negotiations on German unity in the first half of 1990. In 2004 we were key to the day of welcomes when the largest accession ever, of ten new member states, happened during our Presidency. We were key in the negotiations to the most recent accession of Croatia in 2013. This is something that works for us because we understand the value of being part of the European Union and we know how much Ireland has benefited from it.
As the Minister of State has said, we want to make sure the countries that want to share in the success and prosperity should be given the opportunity to do so wherever they can. Part and parcel of this is to send a very clear signal to countries such as Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia that we are so invested in this that we are going to open on the ground resident diplomatic representation in their countries. This would be a very welcome move. I say this conscious of the fact that we are serving these communities and countries extremely well as it is. I think we could do it better. I recognise the commitment the Minister of State has made in terms of the quality of service we are providing at a diplomatic level in these countries as well.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-10-01/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-10-05T01:01:00+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-10-01