Varadkar cited trade fears as reason to expand diplomatic reach

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar warned of a "growing resort to protectionist measures" by some countries in private letters to Ministers explaining why he wanted to double Ireland's "global footprint".

Correspondence released by the Department of the Taoiseach shows Mr Varadkar referring to concerns in the 2017 National Risk Assessment about the impact on trade and the country's "small, open economy" when he set out his plans to increase the country's diplomatic and economic offices overseas.

The Taoiseach outlined his concerns and plans in letters dated September 2017 to Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney, then minister for business Frances Fitzgerald and then minister for culture Heather Humphreys.

The correspondence, released under the Freedom of Information Act, led to planning by the departments and their officials that ultimately produced the Government's Global Ireland 2025 programme, launched last month with the announcement of seven new diplomatic missions.

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New embassies

New embassies were announced for Ukraine, Morocco, the Philippines and Liberia, to open in the coming years, while new consulates will open in Cardiff, Frankfurt and Los Angeles from next year.

The Government is eyeing further regional gaps with new missions in west Africa, the Gulf – possibly Kuwait and Qatar – and Toronto in Canada, and Melbourne and Perth in Australia.

Mr Varadkar said in his letters to his Cabinet colleagues that there was “a new self-confidence in Ireland” and this required the country to “always be ambitious, visible and active in promoting the interests of our nation on the international stage.”

But he warned: “As a small open, economy, Ireland is more vulnerable than many other countries to changes in the regional and global environment.”

Highly exposed

He quoted the 2017 National Risk Assessment, saying the country’s economic performance was “highly exposed to external demand given the openness of our economy” and that one of the ways in which the country was “most exposed to external shocks is through trade”.

“There is emerging evidence of a plateau in global trade volumes since the beginning of 2015 and that there is a growing resort to protectionist measures in various countries globally, which may be damaging to Ireland,” said the 2017 report, quoted by the Taoiseach.

“In this ever more competitive world, we need to ensure that we have the strongest possible presence abroad in order to maintain, grow and diversify our share of international trade, employment and investment,” Mr Varadkar said.

He asked his Ministers for their views on the costs required to meet the increased overseas presence, the development of a clear timeline from 2018 to 2025 with six monthly milestones, “the identification of the obstacles in terms of scaling up to this level” and how it would be “effectively co-ordinated”.