Paul Hosford's New York Diary: Big issues abroad dwarfed by concerns from home
Taoiseach Micheál Martin: While this week may be important on a global scale, the job of governing the country continues. Picture: Brian Lawless
Irish journalists got as close to the UN's eastern Manhattan HQ as they will for the foreseeable future on Tuesday as we were ushered through the ring of steel.
However, far from being welcomed with open arms into the heart of global cooperation, the Irish contingent was met halfway up East 46th Street by An Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
Fresh from a morning of bilateral meetings, the Taoiseach was keen to discuss the work that our small nation is doing on a global scale.
In a meeting with Vietnamese president Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Mr Martin agreed to alert the EU of Vietnam's request for assistance in securing vaccines, telling him the EU was not restricting exports and has donated 750m doses to the global Covax effort.
In a second meeting, this one with Colombia president Ivan Duque Marquez, Ireland's assistance, particularly that of former tánaiste Eamon Gilmore, was praised.
A meeting with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven heard the commitment of the US to double its support to addressing climate change was a welcome step.
But, when the Taoiseach strolled out onto the street, the throng of reporters, eventually being asked to move from the middle of the cordoned-off road after blocking two cars, it was not the global game that was raised. Rather, subjects raised included Ireland's tax rate, energy security, rising rents across the country, and the President's decision not to attend a church event in Armagh.
The parochial nature of the questions will have come down to a number of factors – journalists understand that asking the Taoiseach about bilateral meetings at the UN will hardly make for blockbuster copy, for one – but it will also have served as a reminder to the Taoiseach that while this week may be important on a global scale, the job of governing the country continues.
Asked about the decision of President Michael D Higgins not to attend the centenary event in Armagh, Mr Martin was suitably diplomatic, , saying the Government could not consider any invitation to the service because it had not received an invitation.
While this week is about many, many international issues, all of those will have echoes in Irish life. So, when the Taoiseach lays out Ireland's belief that climate change is linked to global security, the country will work to make sure it can get through the winter without rolling blackouts.
Mr Martin said this threat should be a wake-up call that offshore wind and other renewables were needed quickly in Ireland. But while he talks about global security in New York, if he is wrong and there are blackouts this winter, it may be job security that he needs to worry about.
Ireland's relationship with its own standing in the world has always been a strange one: We proudly punch above our weight and carry an outsized influence in global politics. We are currently working to bring Iran back to the table for talks on its nuclear deal, for example.
But sometimes the public can treat things like this as a nuisance, which is understandable in a way.
If the lights are going off, you can't afford your rent, or your water is making you ill, a high-minded discussion at the UN Security Council is not foremost in your thoughts.
But this is the balance which all world leaders have to find – governing at home while representing their nation on the world stage.
