On 1 July, Ireland assumed the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union for the eighth time, taking over from Cyprus. The six-month term comes amid a period of deep geopolitical flux and runs under the motto Ní neart go cur le chéile — “Strength in unity”.
The Irish presidency will centre on efforts to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness, from deepening the Single Market and boosting innovation to supporting the digital economy and cutting regulatory complexity. Alongside this, it is set to place renewed emphasis on European values and security, despite Ireland’s long-standing policy of military neutrality.
“The main priority will be the ongoing negotiations over the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), the bloc’s long-term budget. For Ukraine, the key issue in this context will be ensuring continued access to EU funding for the development of Europe’s defence industry. Other mechanisms for financing support for Ukraine fall outside the EU’s standard budgetary framework, but a clear signal that defence remains a priority within the MFF would be a positive sign. Ireland was among the early supporters of Ukraine’s EU accession and, during its presidency, is likely to continue helping to keep the process moving forward, although its role will remain limited,” Kenneth McDonagh, an Irish political scientist and associate professor of international relations at the School of Law and Government at Dublin City University (DCU), told The Ukrainian Week.
Irish officials have been very explicit about their support for Ukraine’s European future. Speaking at the opening ceremony at Dublin Castle, attended by President Volodymyr Zelensky, Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin said that on Ukraine’s EU membership bid, Ireland is determined to help it move forward “as far as possible” during its presidency.
According to Donnacha Ó Beacháin, an Irish political scientist and professor at the School of Law and Government at Dublin City University (DCU), Ireland’s 2026 EU presidency offers a strategic opportunity to advance Ukraine’s interests more actively, taking a more hands-on approach.
“This is the first EU presidency in more than a decade and a half during which Hungary is not led by Viktor Orbán, which should make it easier for Ireland to advance Ukraine’s bid for EU membership.
EU enlargement is an extremely sensitive and politically complex issue, but at present it is more of a strategic and diplomatic challenge than an economic or budgetary one. The main difficulty is that many member states fundamentally support enlargement, but differ on timing, financing and institutional consequences,” he told The Ukrainian Week.
At the same time, delivering on the values agenda of the presidency is likely to prove a significant test for Ireland.
“Recent revelations that a significant share of alumina produced at an Irish plant owned by Rusal is being exported to Russia are a cause for concern. Only this week, Sweden concluded that Rusal remains under the control of a sanctioned individual, Oleg Deripaska, and announced sanctions on the company’s assets in Sweden. That is set to increase pressure on Ireland either to secure the plant’s closure or push for a change in ownership. Both options would come at a cost, and the Irish government could come under domestic pressure to protect jobs in the rural part of County Limerick where the facility is based. With Ireland under the spotlight during its presidency, continued inaction is no longer an option,” Kenneth McDonagh stressed.
Challenges for Ireland’s EU presidency — economy, security, US ties
Ireland’s success has been built on a stable multilateral order that has supported trade and investment, with ties to London, Washington and Brussels at the core of that model. “Since Brexit, and following the election and re-election of Donald Trump, that geopolitical landscape has changed fundamentally. Ireland needs to reassess its economic model, particularly its heavy reliance on US investment, given Washington’s increasingly protectionist course,” Kenneth McDonagh argues.
One of the most complex files Ireland will have to navigate is the EU budget talks, which require agreement among all 27 member states on spending priorities, national contributions, farm subsidies, cohesion funds, as well as new pressures linked to defence and competitiveness.
“This will undoubtedly be a difficult process of political bargaining. Reaching agreement on reforms to the EU’s long-term budget, while introducing safeguards for sensitive sectors — particularly agriculture and cohesion funding — could help Irish and European policymakers ease concerns about the economic implications of Ukraine’s accession to the EU,” Donnacha Ó Beacháin told The Ukrainian Week.
Beyond the economic challenges, Ireland’s gaps in security and defence have become increasingly visible.
“We have no air defence systems, no enduring maritime capabilities, no developed intelligence infrastructure and not even a dedicated defence minister. On top of that, our defence spending is the lowest in the EU — we allocate only a fraction of a percentage point to defence. Although the government has acknowledged these shortcomings and begun increasing defence expenditure, the current budget framework still falls well short of what is needed to fund defence procurement,” Kenneth McDonagh says.
According to him, Ireland’s EU presidency has only made these vulnerabilities more apparent. On maritime security, France’s presence in the Irish Sea is expected to provide some reinforcement, while Dublin has also signed a memorandum of understanding with the United Kingdom.
“The challenge for Ireland is that the shifting geopolitical environment has not shifted public opinion, which remains opposed to higher military spending and sceptical about closer cooperation with international partners. Unfortunately, that is unlikely to change without some dramatic event — possibly during Ireland’s presidency — that directly affects the country,” McDonagh adds.
Competitiveness is also set to be a difficult area for the country, as Ireland will have to balance its narrow economic interest in attracting US foreign direct investment with the EU’s push for tighter regulation of the tech sector. Kenneth McDonagh is convinced that Ireland will need to make a significant effort to dispel perceptions that Dublin is overly aligned with American interests.
“The European Union is increasingly being forced to operate amid tensions in its relations with Russia, the United States and China. Trump, Putin and Xi are all seeking to weaken the EU. If relations between Washington and Brussels deteriorate over trade disputes, defence spending or tech regulation, Ireland could find itself chairing difficult discussions among member states. At the same time, Ireland will most likely act more as a mediator and facilitator than a primary decision-maker,” Donnacha Ó Beacháin explained to The Ukrainian Week.
It is relations with the United States that raise the most questions. Despite Ireland’s deep diplomatic, cultural and personal ties with Washington, the bigger uncertainty is what the next moves out of the White House will look like.
“There is a chance that President Trump could visit Ireland during its EU presidency, as a major professional golf tournament is due to take place at his course in Doonbeg, County Clare. If that happens, it will not be easy for Ireland to manage the diplomatic fallout should President Trump use the visit to continue criticising the European Union and making disparaging remarks about it,” Kenneth McDonagh adds.
