New Delhi: India is “front and centre” of Ireland’s strategic thinking in the Asia-Pacific region, Joe Hackett, secretary general (foreign secretary) in the Irish department of foreign affairs, said Wednesday.
He was speaking at an event organised by New Delhi-based think-tank Observer Research Foundation (ORF) to commemorate 75 years of ties between Dublin and New Delhi.
In an effort to deepen ties with India, the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, has invited President Droupadi Murmu for a state visit, Hackett added.
When asked about the Irish foreign ministry’s usage of the term “Asia-Pacific” for the “Indo-Pacific” region — as is the usage in the European Union, of which Ireland is a member — Hackett said that too much need not be read into it.
“India is front and centre of our strategic thinking… The Irish Asia-Pacific strategy document is an update to an earlier document but is still anchored in the European Union’s view towards the region,” Hackett asserted.
A Hindi translation of Dublin’s Asia-Pacific strategy document, first released in October 2023, was also launched at the ORF event in New Delhi.
Explaining how culture — be it music, cinema or sports — is integral to the Irish identity, Hackett said that Ireland will appoint a “cultural attache” to its embassy in New Delhi — in a move to deepen cultural cooperation between the two countries.
“We are looking to use cricket as a way to build awareness of Ireland in India… There are an increasing number of Irish players in the Indian Premier League (IPL),” Hackett said, adding that Indians now make up nearly 1 percent of the population in Ireland, and approximately 70,000 Indians live and work in the country.
Hackett also pushed for the successful conclusion of the EU-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA), a pact that has long been in discussion between the two sides but has gained prominence now owing to “motivation and political will” between the two sides.
Also Read: Despite booming trade, US-China relationship evolving into an ‘ideological rivalry’
Dublin’s Asia-Pacific strategy
Dublin’s Asia-Pacific strategy document aims to pursue mutually beneficial political and economic relationships with the countries located in the region, including China and India.
On ties with India, the document states the need to “deepen our strategic relationship with India across all strands of cooperation, including strengthened political contacts, a deeper trade and investment relationship. We support the conclusion of a comprehensive and ambitious EU-India FTA”.
According to Hackett, there is currently no date set for the conclusion of negotiations for the EU-India FTA. He also added, in response to a question from ThePrint, that no date has been set for an EU-India summit.
“A summit needs to happen but I cannot comment on a date, given that such decisions are complex in nature,” he said.
In a sign that ties are moving in a positive direction, Hackett added: “We would like to see more high-level delegation visits between India and Ireland. Hopefully, the President of India will visit soon.”
Hackett also made it clear that Ireland has “no interest” in choosing sides between the US and China — both countries have been locked in a trade war that has gone on to escalate and include high-technology sectors, such as advanced semiconductors, as reported by ThePrint.
“We have a positive relationship with China based on a rules-based system,” Hackett said.
Ireland has enjoyed a trade surplus for 14 consecutive years with China, one of the few countries that have been able to do so, according to a statement by He Xiangdong, the Chinese ambassador to Ireland, in May last year.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
Also Read: ‘Weaponisation of trade’, ‘resilience of supply chains’ — what new foreign-policy buzzwords mean