Statement by Taoiseach, following bilateral meeting with US Vice President Pence

Mr Vice President, it was an honour to welcome you and your family to Ireland today. The home of your forebears.

I was especially happy to meet again with your mother, Nancy, a remarkable woman whose own father left these shores in 1923 to find a new life in the United States.

Today we were able to show you the service records for your grandfather, Richard Michael Cawley, who served with distinction in the Irish Defence Forces during the Civil War.

Your family’s connection to Ireland is very real and very recent.

The story of Richard Michael Cawley however is not unique.

It is an example of the ties of history, kinship and friendship which link our two countries.

A relationship that transformed the Atlantic from being an ocean of tears into a gateway to hope and opportunity.

Our two countries are united today in our common interests, our shared heritage and our deep abiding friendship.

Ireland and the United States are partners. In the years to come we will continue to work together:

trading, investing and creating employment in each others countries;
facilitating our students and tourists to visit; and
cooperating on security.

The Vice President and I have come from a marvellous meeting where we discussed deepening US – Ireland bilateral relationship.

We also discussed how the United States helped make peace possible on this island, and the vital role it has played protecting the Good Friday Agreement for 20 years and indeed, before that, the role President Reagan played in encouraging Mrs Thatcher to sign the Anglo-Irish Agreement.

Mr. Vice President, your visit to Ireland comes at a critical time in our history, with Brexit less than two months away.

In so many ways, the UK and Ireland are deeply intertwined. The UK’s decision to travel a different course to ours risks being deeply disruptive, especially for the people of Northern Ireland, where most people voted to stay in Europe.

Divergence between the UK and the EU means that the return of a hard border on this island is a very real risk.

I know that you understand the impact a hard border will have on us on this island:

Barriers to the free movement of people and frictionless trade;
Barriers to North/South co-operation;
The risk that the Good Friday Agreement and peace will be undermined.

That is why we must stand our ground on the Withdrawal Agreement. An Agreement which was carefully negotiated to overcome all these risks.

And so Mr. Vice President I ask, that you bring that message back to Washington with you.

This is not a problem of our making. It is one we want to solve - through an orderly Brexit and a withdrawal agreement that guarantees no re-emergence of a hard border on this island.

Thank you.