merrion street

An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar will meet with German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, in Farmleigh House, Dublin this afternoon, Thursday 4^th April. This is on foot of a long-standing invitation from the Taoiseach to the Chancellor to visit Ireland.

Their discussions will focus on Brexit, where they will reflect on the latest developments and look ahead to the special European Council taking place on 10 April. They will also take stock of wider developments in the EU, ahead of European Parliament elections in May, and will discuss bilateral relations between Ireland and Germany.

The Chancellor has been a strong and unwavering ally of Ireland as we respond to the unique challenges Brexit brings. This is also an opportunity to consider other issues on the EU’s agenda, and reflect on how Ireland and Germany can strengthen further the already excellent relations between our two countries.

Ahead of their formal meeting, the Taoiseach and Chancellor will also participate in a roundtable discussion with people from Northern Ireland and the border area, who will share their personal experience and perspectives on the impact any return to a hard border would have on border communities and businesses.

These are people for whom the border is a very real issue – people from communities along the border, from business, and with direct personal experience of conflict before the Good Friday Agreement. It is important to hear their voices as we work together to deal with the challenges that Brexit presents.