Republic of Ireland: Economy grew at 'a solid pace' in 2024
Finance Minister Pascal Donohoe said the figures confirmed that "the domestic economy grew at a solid pace last year, marginally ahead of my department's forecast".He added: "The growth in the domestic economy is consistent with the strength of our labour market – with a record 2.8m people in employment last year."Donohoe warned that the increasingly uncertain global outlook could have negative consequences for Ireland which he described as "a major beneficiary of global economic integration".
Trump's trade measures
The United States is Ireland's single biggest export market for manufactured goods, with sales of €72.6bn (£60.4bn) in 2024.Those goods could be hit with import taxes, known as tariffs, if President Trump extends his protectionist trade measures to the EU.Earlier this week, Trump imposed 25% tariffs on goods entering the US from Canada and Mexico.Donohoe's colleague, Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers, said there had been "extensive contingency planning" regarding tariffs."We know that tariffs will bring serious disruption, damage, and will undermine the international trading environment, which has been the backbone of the Irish economy," he told RTÉ radio."That's why there's scenario planning across all of the different possibilities which might emerge."
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Reuters
a few seconds ago
- Reuters
European leaders to join Zelenskiy in Washington as Trump presses Ukraine deal
LONDON/BERLIN, Aug 17 (Reuters) - European leaders including from Germany, France and Britain will accompany Volodymyr Zelenskiy to meet Donald Trump in Washington, they said on Sunday, seeking to bolster him as the U.S. president presses Ukraine to accept a quick peace agreement. A day before the talks with Trump, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer were hosting a meeting of allies on Sunday to shore up Zelenskiy's position, hoping in particular to lock down robust security guarantees for Ukraine that would include a U.S. role. President Trump is leaning on Zelenskiy to strike an agreement after he met Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin on Friday in Alaska. According to sources, the U.S. and Russian leaders discussed proposals for Russia to relinquish tiny pockets of occupied Ukraine in exchange for Ukraine ceding a swathe of fortified land in the east and freezing the front lines elsewhere. At face value, some of Putin's demands would be hugely difficult for Ukraine to accept, setting the stage for potentially fraught talks about ending Europe's deadliest war in 80 years, which has dragged on for 3-1/2 years and killed or wounded more than 1 million people. European allies are keen to help Zelenskiy avoid a repeat of his last Oval Office meeting, in February. That went disastrously, with Trump and Vice President JD Vance giving the Ukrainian leader a public dressing-down, accusing him of being ungrateful and disrespectful. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will also travel to Washington, as will Finland's President Alexander Stubb, whose access to Trump included rounds of golf in Florida earlier this year, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is an admirer of many of Trump's policies. "The talks will address, among other things, security guarantees, territorial issues, and continued support for Ukraine in its defence against Russian aggression," the German government said in a statement about the Washington trip. "This includes maintaining pressure on sanctions." Macron, Merz and Starmer will host a virtual meeting of the "coalition of the willing" - a grouping of allies of Kyiv - from 1300 GMT on Sunday. Von der Leyen is hosting Zelenskiy in Brussels from where the two leaders will also dial in. European powers want to help set up a trilateral meeting between Trump, Putin and Zelenskiy to make sure Ukraine has a seat at the table to shape its future. They also want security guarantees for Ukraine with U.S. involvement, and the ability to crank up pressure on Moscow if needed. "They will spell out what they consider essential in terms of security guarantees: what they can do themselves, what falls to the coalition of volunteers, and also what they expect from the United States," a European government official said. "Indeed, they expect a very robust commitment." For his part, Putin briefed his close ally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, about the Alaska talks, and also spoke with Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held calls on Saturday with his Turkish and Hungarian counterparts. Hungary has been a hold-out in the European Union against the bloc's efforts to isolate Putin since he sent troops into Ukraine in a full-scale invasion in February 2022. Turkey has tried to maintain open diplomatic channels with both Ukraine and Russia. Trump said on Friday that Ukraine should make a deal to end the war because "Russia is a very big power, and they're not". After the Alaska summit, Trump phoned Zelenskiy and told him that the Kremlin chief had offered to freeze most front lines if Ukraine ceded all of Donetsk, the industrial region that is one of Moscow's main targets, a source familiar with the matter said. Zelenskiy rejected the demand, the source said. Russia already controls a fifth of Ukraine, including about three-quarters of Donetsk province, which it first entered in 2014. Trump also said he agreed with Putin that a peace deal should be sought without the prior ceasefire that Ukraine and its European allies have called for. That was a reversal of his position before the summit, when he said he would not be happy unless a ceasefire was agreed on. Zelenskiy said Russia's unwillingness to pause the fighting would complicate efforts to forge a lasting peace. "Stopping the killing is a key element of stopping the war," he said on X. Russia has made steady advances for months, although in recent days Ukraine said it had cleared some territory where Russian troops had broken through. In his statement after the Alaska summit, Putin signalled no movement in Russia's long-held demands, which also include a veto on Kyiv's desired membership in the NATO alliance. He also warned Ukraine and its European allies not to "create any obstacles. That they will not attempt to disrupt the emerging progress through provocation or behind-the-scenes intrigue".
The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
Watch: US fighter jets escort Putin out of Alaska after Trump summit
The Kremlin has released footage of Vladimir Putin being escorted out of Alaska by US fighter jets after his meeting with Donald Trump on Friday (15 Aug). Video shows US Air Force F-22 and F-35 aircraft flanking the Russian leader's Ilyushin Il-96-300 airliner - dubbed 'the Flying Kremlin', as he headed home following the day-long summit. Putin had a similar escort on his entry into Alaska as his presidential airliner passed through Alaska's Air Defense Identification Zone, an area just outside America's soverign airspace in which all aircraft must identify themselves to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).
The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
Starmer to join Ukraine's Zelensky at White House showdown with Trump
Sir Keir Starmer will join Ukraine 's Volodymyr Zelensky along with other European leaders in Washington on Monday, where they will meet with Donald Trump for peace talks at the White House. European leaders, including Ursula von der Leyen, Friedrich Merz, and Alexander Stubb, are set to join Volodymyr Zelensky. The meeting will be preceded by a "coalition of the willing" video call on Sunday afternoon, hosted by Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron, and Friedrich Merz, to discuss steps towards ending the war in Ukraine. This show of unity by European leaders occurs amidst reports that Donald Trump may press the Ukrainian leader to agree to Russia seizing Ukrainian territory. Claims that Vladimir Putin is demanding full control of Donetsk and Luhansk as a condition for peace, in exchange for ceding other Ukrainian territories held by Russian troops. Donald Trump is reportedly inclined to support this proposed plan and intends to discuss it with Mr Zelensky during their Oval Office meeting.
