Paul Hosford: Cork shines as the best foot Ireland can put forward to kick off EU presidency

Tánaiste Simon Harris (front row,centre left), Taoiseach Micheál Martin (front row, centre right) and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen (front row, centre) pose for a family photo with government ministers and the 27 EU commissioners at University College Cork as Ireland begins its presidency of the EU Council. Picture: Liam McBurney/PA

In a throwaway moment at the tail end of his media appearance near the Donovan Rd entrance to UCC, Tánaiste Simon Harris dropped a line that could lead to more coalition tension than any policy.

"It's not all about Cork," Mr Harris said in an answer intended to espouse the wonder of his native Wicklow. But for two days, the body politic of the EU had to disagree.

A two-day event which kicked off Ireland's EU presidency saw all 27 European commissioners, the Irish Cabinet, and the president of the European Commission descend on the "Real Capital" to set out the agenda of the continent for the next half year, during which Ireland will chair and direct the functions of much of the EU.

Amid rolling road closures and the lockdown of UCC's campus, ministers and commissioners bussed back and forth along the Western Rd for discussions as Ireland set out an agenda of competitiveness, values, and security. 

The last of those was most on display at UCC as a black mesh was wrapped around fencing which encircled the university and armed gardaí patrolled its environs. 

Even the press who sought out chicken fillet rolls had to be escorted to the exits by amiable gardaí down from Dublin. However, while a protest had been held against the event by pro-Palestinian activists on Thursday, Friday saw no such repeat that could be heard or seen by media at least.

The focus of that protest was Ursula von der Leyen, whom protesters feel has mishandled the EU's response to the Israeli war in Gaza and in doing so has emboldened the Israeli government as it carries out atrocities and war crimes — even post-ceasefire. 

On Friday, in a press conference after her meeting with Mr Martin, Ms von der Leyen was pressed on the pace and substance of the EU's response to Israel.

She pivoted to the safest EU position, pointing out that the bloc is the largest provider of humanitarian aid and assistance with €2.7bn being earmarked in the EU’s budget for humanitarian aid and 5,600 tonnes of “essential supplies”. 

The twin problems, Ms von der Leyen said, were a lack of consensus across EU nations which would make getting any resolution passed politically impossible because the European Council votes based on population; and the lack of access to Gaza.

Ms von der Leyen's appearance in Cork had begun with a photo opportunity at City Hall on Thursday, before the motorcade screamed back down Washington St as the EU's commissioners arrived at UCC — among them Michael McGrath. 

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Taoiseach Micheál Martin pose for a photo outside the president’s office door at University College Cork.

The former finance minister was on home turf after many ways. His family had lived on Barrack St not far from the college, but he would also go on to both study and work at UCC.

On Friday, as Mr Harris and foreign affairs minister Helen McEntee held court on issues like the budget, the Occupied Territories Bill, and...er, Taylor Swift, the Cabinet arrived using a fleet of minibuses as opposed to ministerial cars, though one Irish Examiner writer who attempted to grab a quick sidebar with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas was quickly ushered back to the huddle by an eagle-eyed presidency staffer.

As the Taoiseach and Ms von der Leyen fielded questions in UCC's Aula Maxima, they each paid tribute to the work being undertaken in the Tyndall Institute, particularly in research around undersea cables. See? Security.

While the hosting of the presidency may not change the day-to-day lives of average people, it is an impressive logistical feat and, as a starting point for 270 meetings, Mr Martin was pleased to have Cork be the best foot that Ireland could put forward — even without a dedicated event centre in which to do so. 

The truth is that so much of the couple of days is tightly controlled — journalists at the main press conference are forced to pool questions, and even where people stand for photos is decided in advance — that there is often little in the way of spontaneity, which one suspects suited the organisers and attendees, if not the media, down to the ground.

For 36 hours it was, despite what some may think, all about Cork. The next six months, however, are all about Ireland.

• Paul Hosford is the Deputy Political Editor with the Irish Examiner.