Hollande on Brexit: ‘I recognise there is a special situation for Ireland’

A defiant Françoise Hollande has called on French citizens and Europe to stand together in the wake of terrorist attacks to protect freedom, as he thanked Ireland for its solidarity, writes Juno McEnroe. 

The French president, in a brief but crucial visit to Dublin, also bolstered Ireland’s position in backing consideration of our special status in any negotiations on Brexit.

The politics of terrorism and Brexit took centre stage during a meeting with Taoiseach Enda Kenny at Government Buildings yesterday. This was the first bilateral visit by a French head of state here in almost three decades, since president Francois Mitterrand visited in 1988.