Musk and Trump's big, beautiful breakup
Joining Hugh Linehan and Cormac McQuinn on today's Inside Politics podcast is Ellen Coyne, the newest member of The Irish Times politics team.
Together they look back on the week in politics, in Ireland and beyond:
The
crisis
at Children's Hospital Ireland deepens
Growing international disquiet
over Israel's conduct in Gaza
Planning exemptions for 'granny flats'
- can such tinkering make a real difference to the housing crisis?
The
spectacular breakup
of Donald Trump and Elon Musk
Plus the panel pick their favourite Irish Times articles on the week, including
the impact of Airbnb in a rural town
,
the dreaded one-star review
and
a disappearing rainbow crossing
.
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Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
The Baltics are rapidly becoming a cauldron of EU growth when other parts of Europe are stagnating
It's not every day you find yourself in the Orthodox church where Alexander Pushkin 's great-grandfather was baptised. There is something calming about these dark, ornate and often windowless churches. The great-grandfather of Pushkin – the man whom many regard as the epitome of Slavic genius – was from central Africa (modern day Cameroon), a fact that adds to Pushkin's image as a romantic outsider. His great-grandfather, captured as a child by the Ottomans and gifted to the Russian emperor, rose to the position of general in Peter the Great's all-conquering army and was baptised in an Orthodox church in the centre of Vilnius, Lithuania 's very Catholic capital city. As befits a country at the crossroads of Europe, through which Napoleon, Charles X of Sweden, Hitler's Wehrmacht and, of course, Stalin's Red Army trampled, Vilnius is a city of ghosts. Before the second World War, it was known as the Jerusalem of the North, home to 60,000 Jews, of whom fewer than 2,000 survived. Today it is the bustling capital of Lithuania, a country that was once the largest state in Europe when it was the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth. Those halcyon days are evident in the baroque, rococo and the later neoclassical architecture beloved of the Imperial Russians. After all, if you name your top man the Tsar, a Russified version of Caesar, it's not surprising that you'd have a weakness for Roman columns. The Russians were in Lithuania for a long time and, but for a brief period of independence from 1920 to 1941 and Nazi occupation during the war, the Russification of Lithuania continued uninterrupted from 1790 until independence in 1990. Hence Pushkin senior being baptised in Vilnius, where Orthodox churches are common and, for the older generation brought up in the Soviet Union, Russian is the default language. Somehow the Lithuanian language survived; today it is thriving. Yet Russia's presence is palpable, and with the invasion of Ukraine the sense of insecurity is heightened – as it is all throughout the three Baltic Republics of Lithuania and its two northern neighbours, Latvia and Estonia . READ MORE These three small maritime countries face the sea and have been connected with western Europe for centuries. In contrast, Russia is a land power. The Hanseatic influence, tied to Lubeck, Hamburg, London and Amsterdam by the Baltic and North Seas, give the Baltic Republics their Scandinavian feel, not to mention their Catholic and Protestant religion, which distinguishes them from the Orthodox Russians. Economically, these three countries are by far the most successful of post-Soviet Republics, anchoring themselves politically, commercially and militarily to the West, via the EU and Nato . I've yet to meet a person here who doesn't see Nato as a positive. The average person appears to see Nato as an necessary insurance policy, a shield from Russian aggression that the invasion of Ukraine evidenced so dramatically. There is little sympathy for the Kremlin, even or maybe particularly in Latvia which has the largest ethnic Russian minority of the three republics. The war in Ukraine makes their orientation to the West appear – to those I have spoken to at least – all the more logical. What does this shift to western Europe mean for this region economically? There seems to be a different attitude to tech, as I observed on an airBaltic flight between Riga and Vilnius this week: Elon Musk 's Starlink internet was free to all throughout the flight. If there is a technological solution, the Baltics use it and Musk's Starlink is an obvious network. Their view is that if it is good enough for the military, it is good enough for their citizens. Over the past two decades, the standout success of the Baltics has been this embracing of technological possibilities, leading to the creation and fostering of tech companies. Ireland has become home to a significant Baltic diaspora since the early 2000s. These neighbours are not from some backward former Soviet region, but from one of the most dynamic parts of modern Europe Since the founding of Skype in Estonia nearly 20 years ago, the Baltics have been punching far above their weight in tech and entrepreneurship. Dubbed the Silicon Valley of Europe , Estonia now has 10 tech unicorns (including Wise, Bolt, Pipedrive, Playtech, Zego, Veriff and others) in a nation of just 1.3 million . Estonia alone has the highest per capita concentration of billion-dollar tech companies in Europe (and among the highest in the world). Latvia and Lithuania are also nurturing big start-ups. Latvia produced its first unicorn, Printful (print-on-demand ecommerce), in 2021, and has other notable start-ups like airBaltic (an innovation-oriented airline) and fintech platforms. Lithuania, as well as being home to the banking multinational disrupter Revolut, is now home to two unicorns: Vinted (Europe's largest online used-fashion marketplace) and Nord Security (creator of NordVPN). Vilnius has become a fintech hub (hosting the EU's second-largest fintech cluster) and a centre for laser technology and life sciences. [ ECB cuts interest rates by quarter percentage point Opens in new window ] Estonia leads Europe in startups per capita, with 1,100 per million people (4–5 times the European average), and Baltic tech founders are celebrated for their global impact. The World Bank and the OECD often cite the Baltics as models for digital innovation and ease of doing business. As of 2023, ICT contributes around 6 per cent of Estonia's GDP, up from 3 per cent in 2012, and about 7 per cent of its workforce are ICT professionals, the highest share in the EU. Latvia and Lithuania follow close behind and well above the EU average. Around half of all private R&D in Estonia and Latvia is tech-related. As a percentage of European population, the Baltics should have about 1 per cent of EU tech unicorn start-ups; instead they have 12 per cent. Meanwhile, Lithuania leads the EU in the number of fintech licences issued and has thriving tech parks in Vilnius and Kaunas. Lithuania's ICT sector grew 50 per cent in employment over the past decade. They are not only deploying tech to create new companies, the way the government does business here is quite seamless because of mass digitalisation. The problems caused by one Irish hospital not having the medical details of a patient who is being treated in another Irish hospital would never happen here; the entire public sector is paperless. Every government computer speaks to every other one, and to your own laptop. The result of this world-leading e-governance ecosystem is that Estonians can start a company online in minutes and 99 per cent of government services are accessible from home. No queues, no forms, no 'missing in the post' appointments, because one ID card has all the information in one place. Consequently the cost of government bureaucracy has collapsed. This is the future. And yet the region is still captured by the past, most notably the threat of Moscow. [ What does the latest ECB cut mean for borrowers, savers and the broader economy? Opens in new window ] Ireland has become home to a significant Baltic diaspora since the early 2000s, with people from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania now making up roughly 1 per cent of the population (based on the 2022 census and a population of 5.15 million). These neighbours are not from some backward former Soviet region, but from one of the most dynamic parts of modern Europe, the Baltic Sea, home to Poland, Europe's most vibrant large economy, Finland and of course Sweden, as well as the industrial north of Germany. Ireland should learn to use the skills, networks and languages of our new residents to cement relations with this part of the world because this is rapidly becoming a cauldron of EU growth at a time when other parts of Europe are stagnating.
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
Children at west Dublin asylum seeker accommodation witnessed friends being ‘put in the back of a black van'
Children living at an International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) centre in west Dublin said 'everyone was crying' and they were prevented from saying goodbye to their three friends who were picked up by Garda immigration officers for deportation on Wednesday morning. Three siblings, Amira (14), Richard (12) and King (7), were among 35 people, including two other children, deported on a flight from Dublin to Lagos, Nigeria on Wednesday night. They had lived at their accommodation, provided by the IPAS in west Dublin since January 2022 with their mother and father and attended schools six Luas stops away. On Thursday Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan said returning people whose applications have been refused and who have had deportation orders issued against them is 'the foundation of any modern rules-based immigration process'. READ MORE On Friday afternoon, the children's classmates from St James's Primary School and CBS James's Street having arrived home, described what they witnessed on Wednesday morning. 'I was downstairs having breakfast,' says Kimberly (7). 'I saw five men come into the place and they go to their room. Then I saw the girl crying. They were putting their things in the van. I feel sad now.' Her mother, Pearl Chitatariso, was on her way home from work at 8am when she got a call from a friend getting Kimberly and other children ready for school. 'They were crying. They told me their friends were being deported. The children were so hurt. They said they could not say goodbye to their friends. It was very traumatising.' Farhiya Ali, a mother living with her four children in the centre, said: 'The kids were coming down for breakfast when these five men wearing cargo pants, big jackets arrived. 'They came into the third floor, stood in front of the bedroom door, took the three kids back in and told them to pack up. We heard them say: 'You are going to be deported'. As soon as the other children heard then they were all crying. It was such a horrific scene. 'The family were not given time to process what was going on. It was all in 15 minutes. They were put in the back of a black van. For my kids to witness that it was not good. The way the situation was handled was traumatising not only for the children but for all of us.' She said one of her children will not come out of his room. 'They think the gardaí is coming to get them next. To do that to children, that was real injustice.' A number of the children, gathered around in their St James's primary school uniforms on Friday, said they tried to say goodbye to Amira, Richard and King but were prevented from talking to them. 'We knew they were going to the airport,' said a girl, aged about eight. 'Everyone was crying. When we tried to say goodbye the five men said we shouldn't even talk to them. They were making them ignore us. They didn't let us talk to them.' Another girl said: 'They were very sad. The mum was crying. They were carrying their bags. It was bad. They won't let them in Europe again.' Asked how the process could have been handled differently Ms Chitatariso said: 'I believe they should have waited until the other kids have gone to school. Now it is something that they won't forget. They keep on talking about it.' Nick Henderson, chief executive of the Irish Refugee Council said: 'Deporting children as they prepare for school is shocking. This is not what Ireland stands for. 'We urge the Government to work with families in these situations, explore voluntary return more thoroughly and provide support, guidance, and sufficient time – currently just five days – for people to consider this option.' The Department of Justice has been contacted for comment.
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
UN Ocean Conference 3: will it lead to protecting the high seas from all extraction, forever?
It is a gathering almost on the scale of that which convened in 2015 to hammer out the landmark Paris climate agreement. The 2025 UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) is an attempt to secure global agreement to protect our high seas. It could be a rare win for multilateralism at a time of geopolitical tension. More than 100 world leaders, including Taoiseach Micheál Martin , will gather in Nice next week for the third such conference, to be known as UNOC3, with hope of a political breakthrough in the best interests of the world's largest ecosystem. This could lead to protecting the high seas from all extraction, forever. International waters make up about two-thirds of Earth's biosphere by volume. As the publication Nature noted this week, 'exploitation of the high seas risks doing irreversible damage to biodiversity, climate stability and ocean equity. A consensus must be built now to save them.' They have been exploited for centuries. Now climate change is reducing productivity of the high seas through warming and depletion of nutrients and oxygen. They are no longer a giant carbon store. READ MORE Where does 'the Attenborough factor' come in? Thousands of researchers, scientists, economic actors, activists and concerned citizens will be present. For many, the words of naturalist David Attenborough will be ringing in their ears. His film Ocean , which opened last month, features dazzling footage of marine biodiversity – coral reefs, seamounts, whales, sharks, sea lions and fish. But it also shines a light on industrial fishing practices, including bottom trawling, that are wreaking havoc on habitats. Ocean's release and core message was timed to force the topic on to the UNOC3 agenda. Cinemagoers were asked to stay in their seats to hear Attenborough reinforce a compelling message of hope if action is prompt and includes an end to bottom trawling in 'marine protected areas'. How significant is '30x30″? Scientists estimate that we need to protect around 30 per cent of seas by 2030. Nearly all governments agreed to this in Montreal in 2022 but there has been scant progress since. Pursuing 30 by 30 and sustainably managing the other 70 per cent can quickly lead to a reflourishing. Less than 1 per cent of oceans are protected because there is no globally accepted mechanism to do so beyond Antarctica. The UN High Seas Treaty was agreed in 2023 to fill the governance gap. Sixty countries are required to ratify it. As of June 4th, only 28 countries have done so. Ireland has signalled it will ratify once enabling EU legislation is clear. There is no indication the US will do so. Nailing down ratification would send a powerful message, while closing the high seas entirely would benefit many states by boosting catches in national waters – but that may prove to be too big an ask.
