Taoiseach formally invited to St Patrick's Day meeting with Donald Trump

Tomas Doherty

The Taoiseach has been formally invited to the White House for the annual St Patrick's Day bilateral meeting.

US president Donald Trump has written to Micheál Martin, inviting him for a meeting in the Oval Office on March 12th.

In his letter to the Taoiseach, Mr Trump congratulated Mr Martin on his recent appointment.

He added that he looks forward to the United States and Ireland working together.

A spokesperson for the Taoiseach said Micheál Martin was "pleased to have received the invitation" and is "delighted to accept it".

The Embassy in Washington will continue to engage with the White House team on the finer details.

It has become an annual tradition for the Taoiseach to hold a bilateral meeting with the sitting US president in the Oval Office around St Patrick’s Day.

The president is also gifted a bowl of shamrock as part of the visit.

The meeting acts as the centrepiece of the Government’s major diplomatic push for the annual holiday, with most Ministers travelling to destinations across the world.

This year 38 State representatives will visit more than 90 cities in 40 countries.

On Thursday, the Taoiseach was asked about President Trump’s threatened 25 per cent tariffs on certain EU goods and how he would approach the issue when he meets the US leader.

“We’ll take it step by step,” he said.

“As I said, I think the detail of every proposal is the key here. Ireland is a small, open economy.

“In our view, free trade has created a rise in prosperity over the last 30 to 40 years that’s unprecedented in world history.

“It’s our view, and the view of the European Union, that tariffs can damage economies, can cause an inflationary spiral and increased prices for consumers.”

Mr Martin stressed that Ireland had a “wonderful relationship” with the United States.

“It’s an historic one, it’s very important to Irish people, to the Irish diaspora in the United States, over 30 million,” he added.

“And we have a very extensive footprint across the US – diplomatically, economically. I mean, in the most recent statistics Ireland is the sixth largest investor into the US, which is an extraordinary figure. But that’s the level of Irish investment into the US, the jobs we create in the US.

“So, it’s a very robust and important economic relationship, as well as culturally, socially and family-to-family as well. So, I’m looking forward to going to Washington.”