On March 13, Foreign Policy at Brookings hosted Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (Prime Minister of Ireland) for an Alan and Jane Batkin International Leaders Forum. The taoiseach gave an address on Ireland’s role in the world and relations between the European Union and the United States. Taoiseach Varadkar became leader of his party, Fine Gael, and taoiseach of Ireland in June 2017. He spoke about the challenge Brexit poses to the Good Friday Agreement and peace in Northern Ireland, the future of the European Union, relations between the United States and Europe, and Ireland’s role in a changing world.
Following the taoiseach’s speech, Brookings scholar Thomas Wright, director of the Center on the United States and Europe, joined him for a conversation on these themes. Questions from the audience followed the discussion.