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IF DIFFICULT QUESTIONS are raised in the Oval Office meeting tomorrow on the Occupied Territories Bill and Gaza, they will be managed, according to Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
When asked how he would handle the situation whereby criticism is levelled at Ireland in the meeting for its plans to enact a form of the Occupied Territories Bill, the Taoiseach said: “We’ll take it step-by-step.”
“We’re not going to get into specifics of that now, but we’ll manage that,” Martin told reporters in Austin, Texas ahead of travelling to Washington DC this evening.
The Occupied Territories Bill, first presented to the Dáil in 2018, seeks to prohibit both the trade of goods and services with all illegally occupied territories, including Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.
It was confirmed last month that the government will re-draft the bill, which will instead ban the trade of goods but not services from Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories.
The US has raised concerns over the Occupied Territories Bill, something Martin previously told The Journal he was “not surprised” about.
Ahead of visits to the White House last year, significant pressure was placed on former Taoisigh Leo Varadkar and Simon Harris to raise the issue of Gaza and the US aiding Israel with weapons.
However, that was when Joe Biden was in office. Given the very different perspectives on the conflict held by Trump and Ireland, Martin said:
“I’m not going to go into a sort of a rehearse of the meeting or anything like that. But I think we’re all fundamentally agreed on peace… my focus is on copper fastening the ceasefire, the release of all hostages.
“I think the focus has to be on consolidating the ceasefire, consolidating the peace, getting hostages out, and also then a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza, because the people of Gaza have suffered to an enormous degree and cannot be able to continue. Given our own experience of conflict, we’re fundamentally focused on the need for peace, both in the Middle East and in Ukraine.”
When asked what his game plan is for the meeting with Trump tomorrow, the Taoiseach said he is looking forward to the engagement with the US president.
“It’s a welcome opportunity. It reflects the very strong tradition between Ireland the United States, in celebrating the Irish American diaspora.
He welcomed that the US president had launched Ireland Heritage Month recently “in a very positive way”.
“I think it’s an opportunity to celebrate that in the first instance, and then to discuss the issues of the day, and obviously the economic relationship will be very strong and key part of it,” said Martin.
He told reporters ahead of the meeting tomorrow: “I think the message is that the relationship is an enduring one. It will evolve. And, in my view, from what I’ve seen here, it will get stronger.
“So, we have to keep pushing ahead with engaging with the US at all levels.”
Asked about whether he fears some multinationals may move operations back state-side, the Taoiseach said successful companies operating in Ireland had survived by adapting and changing when circumstances change.
“The actual reaction of multinationals that I met has been very positive,” he added.
Multinationals are such as Microsoft and pharmaceutical companies are in Ireland for the “long haul”, said Martin.
The Taoiseach said US President Donald Trump is “always welcome to visit Ireland”.
With reporting from Jane Matthews in Austin, Texas
Need more information on what is happening in Israel and Palestine? Check out our FactCheck Knowledge Bank for essential reads and guides to navigating the news online.
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