Tánaiste's address at the Day of Welcomes - 20th anniversary

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Taoiseach, Commissioner, Colleagues, Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, I am delighted to be here today to celebrate the anniversary of this momentous occasion with you all.

20 years ago, under an Irish Presidency led by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, the EU welcomed 10 new member states from Central and Eastern Europe, on what was a special “Day of Welcomes”. It remains for many people a very warm memory.

Ireland was of course a beneficiary of the first wave of EU enlargement some thirty years earlier. We know the positive transformative impact membership has had on this island.

We know that our progress and wellbeing as a nation is inextricably linked to a strong, confident and resilient union – a union that is open to further expansion.

Membership of the EU has transformed all communities in Ireland for the better. We are more global in outlook and more confident as a nation.

To those who are nervous of, and seek to highlight the risks of enlargement, I say find confidence in the success of each phase of expansion since 1973.

The inclusion of 10 new member states in 2004 – countries with very different states of development than existing members at the time – has strengthened the union, increased the size and potency of our single market and enhanced our global leverage.

Ireland will always be on the side of those who seek the peace, prosperity and community of shared values that the EU provides.

Over decades, the European Union has also provided strong and steadfast support to peace and reconciliation on this island.

We should never forget that in 1972, when the European Communities opened the door to Ireland and the UK, it was the very worst year of violence during the Troubles in Northern Ireland, with nearly 500 men, women and children being killed in a single year.

In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement, the foundation for peace in Northern Ireland, brought an end to more than 30 years of violent conflict.

In the 26 years on from the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, our EU partners have been steadfast in their support, contributing enormously to realising the objectives and commitments set out in the Agreement and the wider dividends of peace.

They have consistently demonstrated the value they place on the process of peace and reconciliation on this island, showing extraordinary solidarity with Ireland as we have navigated the challenges created by the UK’s decision to leave the EU.

The government will continue to work with our partners in the EU, itself the world’s most successful peace project, to the benefit of all communities on this island.

The Enlargement of the EU twenty years ago was a milestone in reuniting Europe, East and West.

But of course, we know that our Union is still not yet complete.

Russia’s full-scale illegal invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 brought into sharp focus just how important EU Enlargement is, as a geo-strategic tool to consolidate peace, stability and democracy across our European continent.

Enlargement is now back at the top of the EU agenda, after a regrettable period of stagnation.

I am proud of the steps we have taken in the past two years to put Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia firmly on an EU path, and to advance the candidacies of Albania, North Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

This is positive momentum, which I hope will continue to gather pace.

For the good of our Union, and for the good of new Member States, EU accession is an exacting process.

Candidate countries must show evidence that they are ready to assume the rigours of EU membership, and current Member States have an obligation to support them in implementing the necessary reforms.

I am pleased that Ireland will soon open new Embassies in Belgrade, Sarajevo and Chisinau precisely because we believe in Enlargement, and the role we must play in supporting it.

Days like today are an opportunity to pause and reflect on the advances we have made since our biggest enlargement ever in 2004; to take stock of the fact that our Union is stronger, more prosperous, and better as a result of these decisions; to appreciate the contributions of the countries that joined us in 2004, and to anticipate the contributions of those who are yet to join.

Each country that joined in 2004 – and those who have since joined- have become important partners for Ireland in the intervening twenty years.

We may not agree on every issue, but together, we have faced major challenges from Brexit to COVID-19 to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In particular, I want to express my appreciation for the unstinting solidarity shown by all members to Ireland during the Brexit process.

And while this is a day for celebration, I also must highlight the devastation currently being experienced on our Mediterranean doorstep in Gaza.

The atrocities of October 7th, and the appalling war that they unleashed, requires all of us to focus on ending it.

Ireland has been very clear. There must be an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and a massive humanitarian intervention.

At the same time, in the face of acute deprivation, as well as rising violence and dispossession of communities in the West Bank, the people of Palestine continue to seek their rightful place amongst the nations of the world.

Ireland will firmly support the endorsement of Palestinian democratic self-determination, and we will formally recognise the State of Palestine.

Now more than ever, we need a strong expression of global consensus on the need for a lasting peace based on the two-State solution between Israel and Palestine.

At this precarious moment for the Middle East, it is vital that the EU and wider international community uses whatever political capital we have to generate momentum for a comprehensive regional peace.

During my recent visit to Egypt and Jordan, in discussions with political leaders and humanitarian actors on the ground, there was a clear consensus that political vision is desperately needed to break the cycle of violence, address the perilous humanitarian situation, contain the wider regional instability, and ensure sustainable security for everyone.

The two-State solution represents this political vision.

One of the indelible memories of the Day of Welcomes was the poem which Seamus Heaney composed and read at the invitation of the government.

In Beacons at Bealtaine, our Nobel Laureate fashioned a rich weave of Celtic and European culture, language and history, and which magnificently captured the historic spirit and emotion of the occasion.

For the 20th anniversary, my department has been proud to partner with the Heaney Estate and Literature Ireland to commission and publish new translations of the poem into the national languages of the ten Member States who joined that day.

As we launch this beautiful publication today, and the associated film featuring young performers from the ten countries, I want to express our warmest thanks to the Heaney family who are with us - Marie, Michael and Christopher - for your generosity in collaborating with us on this special project.

I will conclude on a message of hope.

With each wave of Enlargement, we have continued to grow and prosper, both collectively as a Union and individually as Member States.

Membership has supported us in becoming a more prosperous, more accepting and more just society.

I recognise that the challenges we face globally are stark, and while it might be easy to lose hope, we have proven time and time again, that by working together, extraordinary things can be achieved.

I look forward to seeing what extraordinary things we can achieve in the coming years, and what benefits further enlargement brings us.

On the Day of Welcomes, Seamus Heaney invited us to ‘Move lips, move minds, make new meanings flare’. I want us to continue to respond to this call.

Thank you very much for taking the time to commemorate and celebrate this occasion with us.

I do hope you all enjoy this evening’s affair - go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.

ENDS

Press Office

1 May 2024