Taoiseach Micheál Martin will meet representatives of the US Jewish community during his St Patrick’s Day trip to the United States.
The meeting comes against the backdrop of a severe souring in diplomatic relations between Ireland and Israel over the war in Gaza, which has seen the country close its embassy in Dublin.
In a Government statement released as Mr Martin embarked on his trip to the US, he said the meeting was arranged to “discuss the rise of global anti-Semitism and actions by Ireland to combat anti-Semitism, both at home and internationally”.
Late last year, Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar accused then taoiseach Simon Harris of anti-Semitism, citing Irish support for what he called “politicised” proceedings against Israeli leaders by the International Criminal Court as well as Irish support for an action at the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide over its campaign in Gaza.
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The Israeli ambassador to Ireland, Dana Erlich, told a broadcaster in the country last December that there had been a “systemic hate campaign” specifically against her and said that the Irish Government was “advancing anti-Semitic measures” and that there is an “anti-Israel obsession” in Ireland.
[ Israel to close Dublin embassy over ‘extreme anti-Israel policies’Opens in new window ]
The Government said that the Taoiseach expects to cover a “broad agenda” of issues in his meeting with US president Donald Trump on Wednesday, including historic and economic ties, as well as the war in Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East.
The Taoiseach will also update the president on the situation in Northern Ireland, “recognising the huge contribution the US has made to securing peace” in the North”.
Meanwhile, Tánaiste Simon Harris will rely on new research commissioned by officials in his department in advance of what a Government source said would be a “diplomatic offensive” built around the St Patrick’s Day visits.
Mr Harris will tell US policymakers and business leaders that there are 203,000 people employed by some 770 Irish companies operating in the United States. The Government has previously boasted of 115,000 employees working for the top 10 Irish firms in the US.
The Tánaiste is travelling to New York and Philadelphia as part of the St Patrick’s Day charm offensive.
[ The Irish Times view on Micheál Martin’s trip to Washington: a tricky assignmentOpens in new window ]
Mr Martin will travel to Austin, Texas and attend the South by Southwest festival, where he will meet Enterprise Ireland client companies, open a Screen Ireland event and attend a pop-up Gaeltacht. He will also meet the governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, and visit the headquarters of Dell and US software company Tricentis.
He will travel to Washington, DC on Tuesday, where he will attend the Irish Embassy’s annual St Patrick’s Day reception. Following his visit to the White House, on Thursday he will meet members of the newly established Strategic Economic Advisory panel (SEA) set up by the Government, before speaking at a series of events organised by Enterprise Ireland, the IDA and the US Chamber of Commerce. He will then attend the Ireland Funds National Gala.
On Friday he will meet representatives of the US Jewish community and also visit the headquarters of an Irish company working in the data centre sector in the US market.
In a statement, Mr Martin said he wanted to “further strengthen the bonds between our two countries with a focus on economic, political and people-to-people connections”.
He said Irish investment in the US “reflects a deepening economic interdependence between the two countries”.
Mr Martin said he is “delighted” to be meeting Mr Trump, who he said “knows Ireland well, having visited on a number of occasions, and I know that his beautiful golf club in Doonbeg is very close to his heart”.
“My visit to the US comes at a moment of great peril for the world. The US remains an indispensable partner and global actor. I look forward to discussing with president Trump how Ireland, together with our EU partners, can work with him and his administration to end conflict and to secure peace, whether in the Middle East or in Ukraine.”
