Carney touted “the possibility of a more durable ceasing of hostilities,” and he described G7 host France’s planned inclusion of the leaders of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in an expanded summit format as “timely.”
But Carney emphasized any credible deal would require “a broader cessation of hostilities, including in Lebanon.”
Martin — whose government has been sharply critical of Israel, which shut its Irish embassy in protest — concurred, saying it would be “extremely important that Lebanon is included in the peace process. Lebanese sovereignty is absolutely essential.”
Lebanon is of particular importance to Ireland, a non-NATO member, because the Irish contribute troops to the United Nations peacekeeping force in south Lebanon — and have lost 48 soldiers on duty there since 1978.
Carney’s trip to Ireland seeks, in part, to promote his agenda of building Canadian cooperation with Europe as a counterbalance to the tension the country has experienced with its southern neighbor under the Trump administration. And Ireland is about to become a particularly influential ally, since it’s taking over the rotating presidency of the European Council on July 1 and will consequently be hosting scores of EU events over the coming six months.
But his swing through Ireland also looks like a bid to build the political brand of Carney, a policy wonk and former central banker who’s been an elected lawmaker for barely a year. His family story will come into focus Sunday when he visits his ancestral home in a County Mayo village from which his paternal grandparents emigrated to Canada in 1925.