Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence, Thomas Byrne TD, is in Berlin today to meet with his new German counterpart, Gunther Krichbaum.
The German Minister of State for Europe was appointed by Chancellor Merz back in April.
The two are expected to discuss Irish-German bilateral relations including issues such as security and defence, trade, and Ireland’s forthcoming EU Presidency next year.
Speaking ahead of the visit, Minister Byrne said:
“I greatly look forward to meeting with Minister Krichbaum. Our meeting comes at a crucial moment, just one day after the European Council in Brussels, where I accompanied the Taoiseach. That summit saw a very important discussion on the current situation in the Middle East, as well as European defence and security and Ukraine, and I look forward to discussing these with Minister Krichbaum.”
“I will also be setting out Ireland’s priorities for the next EU multi-annual budget and, as fellow net contributors to the budget, I look forward to discussing how we can work together to shape EU funds into the future.”
Germany is one of Ireland’s largest trading partners with trade in goods and services of almost €70bn.