Despite his “fondness for Ireland,” Tánaiste Simon Harris has stated that Donald Trump’s US presidency causes “instability,” reports Breaking News.
According to the Tánaiste, a St. Patrick’s Day invitation to the White House has not yet been sent, but he thinks one will be.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr. Harris, stated that his department was in “full preparatory mode” for any tariffs that the United States could impose on the European Union, reports Breaking News.
However, he asserted that if people “keep their head” regarding the Trump administration, there is a “way forward.”
“I spoke to president Trump, I spoke to him at the end of November, and I have no doubt that he has a fondness for Ireland, that he understands Ireland and understands the positive contributions that Ireland makes,” he told RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne programme, reports Breaking News.
“I think we need to take a deep breath in relation to this, and we need to be calm in relation to this too. There’s no doubt there is challenges on the horizon. But what have we seen from president Trump in the last number of days? We’ve seen he put tariffs on Mexico and then he paused them. We saw he put tariffs on China, and he did proceed with them. We saw he put tariffs on Canada, and then he paused them. It certainly creates instability, it certainly creates challenge. But the point I’m making is tariffs are bad for people in the United States of America. They’re bad for many people who voted for president Trump,” reports Breaking News.
He stated that he thinks a deal with Mr. Trump is possible and that he had suggested that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio meet with the foreign ministers of the European Union during the most recent Foreign Affairs Council.
“I believe the president of the United States of America wants the European Union and member states to buy more US goods and US products, and there are opportunities, I believe, for the EU and Ireland to do more business and more trade with the United States, and therefore address some of the deficit that exists in relation to goods,” he said, reports Breaking News.
He said the government “will absolutely be” helping Irish firms, drawing a comparison between the problem and how the issues of Brexit were resolved.
He presented ideas to Cabinet this week to create a strategic advisory group for US-based companies with ties to Ireland that would advise Irish embassies and a trade forum in Ireland that would connect government agencies and business associations to discuss the merits of sustaining investment in Ireland, reports Breaking News.
He said that throughout the general election campaign in November, his Fine Gael party and its coalition allies Fianna Fáil made it plain that, in the event of an Irish economic shock, tax reforms would “slow down” but public sector investments would continue.
Regarding the Taoiseach’s yearly visit to the White House for St. Patrick’s Day, Mr. Harris stated that he anticipated receiving an invitation from Mr. Trump, reports Breaking News.
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