Ireland–United States relations
Ireland |
United States |
---|---|
Diplomatic mission | |
Irish Embassy, Washington, D.C. | United States Embassy, Dublin |
Envoy | |
Ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason | Ambassador Claire D. Cronin |
According to the governments of the
Ireland pursues a policy of
History
Pre-Irish independence
In 1800 under the Acts of Union 1800, Ireland was politically unified with Britain to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. All major diplomatic decisions regarding Ireland were made in London. From this time until 1922, when twenty-six of thirty-two counties of Ireland seceded to form the Irish Free State (later becoming the Republic of Ireland), the United States' formal diplomatic affairs with Ireland were carried out through London.
Immigration
Half of the Irish immigrants to the United States in its colonial era (1607–1775) came from the Irish province of Ulster, while the other half came from the other three provinces (Leinster, Munster and Connacht).[4]
The
Fenians
After the
De Valera
Éamon de Valera, a prominent figure in the Easter Rising and the Irish War of Independence, was himself born in New York City in 1882. His American citizenship spared him from execution for his role in the Easter Rising.[10][11]
De Valera went on to be named
World War I
The United States Navy had five U.S. Naval Air Stations in Ireland from 1918 to 1919. These stations were specifically in place to protect Ireland and neighbouring countries from belligerent submarine aggression. The names and locations of these bases were
Post-Irish independence
U.S. recognition of Ireland
The Irish War of Independence ended in 1921 with the Anglo-Irish Treaty, which confirmed the partition of Ireland into the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland, the latter of which opted to remain a part of the United Kingdom. The Irish Free State quickly fell into the Irish Civil War between Pro-Treaty Forces who supported independence via partition and Anti-Treaty Forces who opposed partition and wanted independence for the entire island of Ireland. Pro-Treaty Forces won the Irish Civil War in 1923, and the following year the United States recognized the Irish Free State and established diplomatic relations with it.[16] The Irish Free State was succeeded by the new state of Ireland in 1937, and formally declared itself a republic in 1949.
Given the major role of Irish politicians in the Democratic Party, De Valera hoped that Democratic President Franklin D. Roosevelt would be highly favorable toward Ireland, especially where tensions with Great Britain were concerned. Historian Bernadette Whelan concludes Dublin was disappointed regarding the negotiation of a US-Irish trade agreement and the purchase of weapons in the late 1930s. However, through "soft diplomacy," US-Irish relations achieved some degree of normalcy during this period. Whelen points out Washington's even-handed reaction to de Valera's successful revision of the 1922 Irish Constitution. It looked forward toward a united and independent republic, with Dublin controlling Northern Ireland. Washington did not agree and in the end the "special relationship" that emerged linked London and Washington.[17]
World War II/The Emergency
Ireland was officially neutral during
Cold War
During the
Celtic Tiger
U.S. foreign direct investment in Ireland has been particularly important to the growth and modernization of Irish industry since 1980, providing new technology, export capabilities, and employment opportunities. During the 1990s, Ireland experienced a period of rapid economic growth referred to as the Celtic Tiger. While Ireland's historical economic ties to the UK had often been the subject of criticism, Peader Kirby argued that the new ties to the US economy were met with a "satisfied silence".[21] Nevertheless, voices on the political left have decried the "closer to Boston than Berlin" philosophy of the Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrat government.[22] Growing wealth was accompanied by rapidly increased life expectancy and very high quality of life ratings; the country ranked first in The Economist's 2005 quality of life index.[23]
The Troubles
The US also involved itself as an
War on Terror
Ireland's air facilities were used by the United States military for the delivery of military personnel involved in the
European Union
With Ireland's membership in the European Union, the discussion of EU trade and economic policies, as well as other aspects of EU policy, is also a key element in the U.S.-Irish relationship. In recent years, Ireland has attempted to act as a diplomatic bridge between the United States and the European Union. During its 2004 Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Ireland worked to strengthen U.S.-EU ties that had been strained by the Iraq War, and former Irish Taoiseach John Bruton was named EU Ambassador to the United States. In May 2011, U.S. President Barack Obama visited Ireland.[35] In 2012 according to a U.S. Global Leadership Report, 67% of Irish people approved of Obama's leadership. This was the fourth-highest rating for any surveyed country in Europe.[36]
In 2017,
In April 2019,
In March 2023, Joe Biden visited Belfast, Northern Ireland, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. Bill Clinton played a significant role in negotiating the GFA over several decades, and it has enjoyed bipartisan support in the United States.[42]
Gaza war
Ireland has had
Economic ties
Subsidiaries of US multinationals have located in Ireland due to low taxation and an educated English-speaking population. Ireland is the world's most profitable country for US corporations, according to analysis by US tax journal Tax Notes.[48] In 2013, Ireland was named the "best country for business" by Forbes.[49]
The United States is Ireland's largest export partner and second-largest import partner (after the United Kingdom), accounting for 23.2% of exports and 14.1% of imports in 2010.[50] It is also Ireland's largest trading partner outside of the European Union. In 2010, trade between Ireland and the United States was worth around $36.25 billion. U.S. exports to Ireland were valued at $7.85 billion while Irish exports to the U.S. were worth some $28.4 billion, with Ireland having a trade surplus of $20.5 billion over the U.S.[51] The range of U.S. products imported to Ireland includes electrical components, computers and peripherals, pharmaceuticals, electrical equipment, and livestock feed. Exports to the United States include alcoholic beverages, chemicals and related products, electronic data processing equipment, electrical machinery, textiles and clothing, and glassware.
The major U.S. investments in Ireland to date have included multibillion-dollar investments by
Cultural ties
Irish immigration to the USA has played a large role in the
A number of the presidents of the United States have Irish origins.[53] The extent of Irish heritage varies. For example, Chester A. Arthur's father and both of Andrew Jackson's parents were Irish-born, while George W. Bush has a rather distant Irish ancestry. Ronald Reagan's father was of Irish ancestry,[54] while his mother also had some Irish ancestors. John F. Kennedy had Irish lineage on both sides. Within this group, only Kennedy was raised as a practicing Roman Catholic. Former President Barack Obama's Irish heritage originates from his Kansas-born mother, Ann Dunham, whose ancestry is Irish and English.[55] President Joe Biden is also an Irish-American on both his parents sides and a practicing Roman Catholic like Kennedy.
Emigration, long a vital element in the U.S.–Irish relationship, declined significantly with Ireland's economic boom in the 1990s. For the first time in its modern history, Ireland experienced high levels of inward migration, a phenomenon with political, economic, and social consequences. However, Irish citizens do continue the common practice of taking temporary residence overseas for work or study, mainly in the US, UK, Australia and elsewhere in Europe, before returning to establish careers in Ireland. The US J-1 visa program, for example, remains a popular means for Irish youths to work temporarily in the United States.[56]
Resident diplomatic missions
- Ireland has an embassy in Washington, D.C., and consulates-general in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco.[57]
- United States has an embassy in Dublin.[58]
See also
- United States Ambassador to Ireland
- Embassy of the United States in Dublin
- Deerfield Residence (United States Ambassador's Official Residence in Ireland)
- Ireland–NATO relations
- Irish Americans
- Foreign relations of the United States
- Foreign relations of the Republic of Ireland
- Irish diaspora
References
- ^ Ireland US Department of State Retrieved 2011-02-20
- ^ Ireland – U.S. Relations Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Retrieved 2016-02-27
- ^ "NATO – Member countries". NATO. NATO. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
- ISBN 978-0674375123.
- ^ "Irish-Catholic Immigration to America". Library of Congress. Retrieved 13 April 2008.
- ^ Diner, Hasia R. (1983). Erin's Daughters in America: Irish Immigrant Women in the Nineteenth Century. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 1–9, 31.
- ^ Diner, Hasia R. Erin's Daughters. pp. 31–32.
- ^ Niall Whelehan, The Dynamiters: Irish Nationalism and Political Violence in the Wider World, 1867–1900 (Cambridge, 2012)
- ISBN 9780521664134.
- ISBN 978-0-7453-1317-7. Retrieved 4 April 2011.
- ISBN 9780297177111. Retrieved 4 April 2011.
- ^ Jordan, Anthony J. Eamon de Valera 1882–1975, pp. 63–70.
- ^ "Dáil Éireann – Volume 2 – Vote of thanks to the people of America". Houses of the Oireachtas. 17 August 1921. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
- ^ "Dáil Éireann – Volume 1 – Ministerial Motions. – Presidential election campaign in USA". Houses of the Oireachtas. 29 June 1920. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
- ^ "Dáil Éireann – Volume 1 – Debates on Reports. – Finance". Houses of the Oireachtas. 10 May 1921. Archived from the original on 19 November 2007. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
- ^ "Ireland – Countries – Office of the Historian". Retrieved 19 February 2015.
- ^ Bernadette Whelan, De Valera and Roosevelt: Irish and American Diplomacy in Times of Crisis, 1932–1939 (2020).
- ^ a b Fanning, R., 1983, Independent Ireland, Dublin: Helicon, Ltd.., pp 124–25
- ^ Kennedy, Michael (8 October 2014). "Ireland's Role in Post-War Transatlantic Aviation and Its Implications for the Defence of the North Atlantic Area". Royal Irish Academy. Archived from the original on 17 November 2007. Retrieved 10 October 2007.
- ^ Irish Times, 28 December 2007 p. 1. Archived 7 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Paul Keenan. Book review of Peader Kirby's The Celtic Tiger In Distress. Accessed 4 November 2006.
- ^ Creaton, Siobhan (24 February 2011). "FF-PD policy to blame for economic ills, claims report". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 18 February 2013.
- ^ "The Economist Intelligence Unit's quality-of-life index" (PDF). The Economist.
- ^ Rusbridger, Alan (21 June 2004). "'Mandela helped me survive Monicagate, Arafat could not make the leap to peace – and for days John Major wouldn't take my calls'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 17 September 2006.
- ^ a b Villa, 'The Reagan-Thatcher "special relationship" has not weathered the years'.
- ^ Alec Russell, 'Major's fury over US visa for Adams', Daily Telegraph (23 June 2004), p. 9.
- ^ Joseph O'Grady, 'An Irish Policy Born in the U.S.A.: Clinton's Break with the Past', Foreign Affairs, Vol. 75, No. 3 (May/June 1996), pp. 4–5.
- ^ O'Grady, 'An Irish Policy Born in the U.S.A.', p. 5.
- ^ Russell, 'Major's fury', Daily Telegraph, p. 9.
- ^ "Private Members' Business. – Foreign Conflicts: Motion (Resumed)". Government of Ireland. 30 January 2003. Archived from the original on 11 May 2011. Retrieved 10 October 2007. – Tony Gregory speaking in Dáil Éireann
- ^ Grey, Stephen (14 November 2004). "US 'torture flights' stopped at Shannon". The Times. London. Retrieved 8 September 2005.
- ^ "Investigations into CIA 'torture flights'". Village. 25 November 2005. Archived from the original on 27 July 2007. Retrieved 7 September 2006.
- ^ Kelley, Dara,WikiLeaks reveals Justice Minister's Dermot Ahern's rendition fears Irish Central, 18 December 2010.
- ^ EU to censure Ahern over rendition role Archived 12 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine, The Irish Times, 24 January 2007.
- ^ Obama in Ireland: president searches for 'missing apostrophe' The Telegraph, 23 May 2011
- Gallup
- ^ "Commissioner Phil Hogan, Speech at American Chamber of Commerce Ireland Cork Business Lunch: Brexit, Ireland-US relations, Ireland and the Future of Europe". European Commission Representation in Ireland. 22 September 2017. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- ^ Pogatchnik, Shawn; Long, Heather (13 December 2017). "Despite Trump's ire, Ireland expects to avoid any pain from U.S. tax overhaul". The Washington Post. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- ^ a b Campbell, John (18 April 2019). "Brexit: Nancy Pelosi steps up pressure on UK over Irish border". BBC News. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ^ McLaughlin, Dean (18 April 2019). "Nancy Pelosi visits Irish border and Derry". BBC News. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- ^ Wintour, Patrick (9 June 2021). "Biden arrives with demand that UK settle Brexit row over Northern Ireland". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
- ^ McGee, Luke (7 April 2023). "What is the Good Friday Agreement? How a historic deal ended the Troubles in Northern Ireland". CNN.
- ^ a b Specia, Megan (2 December 2023). "Tracing the Deep Roots of Ireland's Support for Palestinians". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ Baker, Peter; Kanno-Youngs, Zolan (14 March 2024). "As Irish Leader Visits U.S., Shamrock Camaraderie Is Strained by Gaza War". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 15 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ McGee, Harry; Duggan, Keith (14 March 2024). "Taoiseach insists he will not dilute Government's criticism of Israel during US trip". The Irish Times. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ Kanno-Youngs, Zolan (17 March 2024). "Biden and Irish Leader Use St. Patrick's Day Visit to Address Gaza". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 19 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ Mullally, Una. "Biden Loves Ireland. It Doesn't Love Him Back". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Ireland top location for US Multinational Profits". Finfacts.ie. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
- ^ Gleeson, Collin (5 December 2013). "Forbes names Ireland as 'best country for business'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
- ^ "CSO – Main Trading Partners 2010". Cso.ie. Archived from the original on 11 February 2005. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
- ^ "Country Trade Profile". Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
- ^ "Selected Social Characteristics in the United States (DP02): 2013 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 12 February 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
- ^ "Irish-American History Month, 1995". irishamericanheritage.com. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 14 April 2008.
- ^ William Borders (6 September 1981). "Village in Tipperary is Cashing in on Ronald Reagan's Roots". The New York Times.
- ^ "The Presidents, Barack Obama". American Heritage.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2006. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
- ^ United States Department of State
- ^ Embassy of Ireland in Washington, D.C.
- ^ Embassy of the United States in Dublin
This article incorporates public domain material from U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets. United States Department of State.
Further reading
- Brown, Thomas N. "The Origins and Character of Irish-American Nationalism." Review of Politics (1956) 18#03 pp: 327–358.
- Carroll, Francis M. America and the Making of an Independent Ireland (New York University Press, 2021) online review.
- Cooper, James, "'A Log-Rolling, Irish-American Politician, Out to Raise Votes in the United States': Tip O'Neill and the Irish Dimension of Anglo-American Relations, 1977–1986," Congress and the Presidency, (2015) 42#1 pp: 1–27.
- Cronin, Seán. Washington's Irish Policy 1916–1986: Independence, Partition, Neutrality (Dublin: Anvil Books, 1987)
- Davis, Troy D. Dublin's American Policy: Irish-American Diplomatic Relations, 1945–1952 (Catholic University of America Press, 1998)
- Finnegan, Richard B. "Irish–American Relations." in by William J. Crotty and David Schmitt, eds. Ireland on the World Stage (2002): 95–110.
- Geiger, Till, and Michael Kennedy, eds. Ireland, Europe and the Marshall Plan (Four Courts Press, 2004)
- Guelke, Adrian. "The United States, Irish Americans and the Northern Ireland Peace Process," International Affairs (1996) 72#3 pp: 521–36.
- MacGinty, Roger. "American influences on the Northern Ireland peace process." Journal of Conflict Studies 17#2 (1997). online
- Sewell, Mike J. "Rebels or Revolutionaries? Irish-American Nationalism and American Diplomacy, 1865–1885." The Historical Journal (1986) 29#3 pp: 723–733.
- Sim, David. A Union Forever: The Irish Question and U.S. Foreign Relations in the Victorian Age (2013) excerpt
- Tansill, Charles. America and the Fight for Irish Freedom 1866–1922 (1957) excerpt
- Ward, Alan J. "America and the Irish Problem 1899–1921." Irish Historical Studies (1968): 64–90. in JSTOR
- Whelan, Bernadette. De Valera and Roosevelt: Irish and American Diplomacy in Times of Crisis, 1932–1939 (Cambridge University Press, 2020) online review
- Wilson, Andrew J. Irish America and the Ulster Conflict, 1968–1995 (Catholic University of America Press, 1995)
External links
Media related to Relations of the Republic of Ireland and the United States at Wikimedia Commons