"India is a huge, massive economy on the rise": Ireland's envoy calls for stronger political, economic and trade links

New Delhi [India], September 19 : Ambassador of Ireland to India, Kevin Kelly on Thursday highlighted New Delhi's growing stature on the global platform in terms of economy and called for stronger political, economic and trade links between the two nations.
"India is a huge, massive economy on the rise. It's shortly going to be the third-largest economy in the world. However, we've gone from being the poorest country in Europe when we joined the European Union in 1973 to the richest country in Europe in 2024...," said Kelly while speaking to ANI.
He said that their delegates have proposed that both countries should have a joint economic commission.
Kelly said, "We have proposed to our Indian partners that it would be great if we have a joint economic commission. It is an opportunity for the two governments to get together and talk about what are the opportunities for partnership and engagement..."
Speaking about the changes in their Asia Pacific strategy, he said that Ireland wants stronger political, economic and trade links with India.
"In the past, we've been part of the Asia Pacific strategy. But I would have to admit that perhaps a lot of our focus and attention was focused on China. There's a new recognition that there's a lot more we can do with India. So we have a new strategy which is about stronger political links, stronger economic and trade links (with India)...," said the Irish envoy.
On India's role in the Asia-Pacific region, he said that India is a leader in the region and is getting stronger.
"India is a leader within this region, and it's only getting stronger, in terms of the size of the economy and the size of the population. India is always going to play a very important role both within this region and internationally in terms of the United Nations. We would like to see India use that influence as much as it can in terms of helping to resolve issues and conflicts that emerge within the neighbourhood, but also abroad," he said.
He also spoke about the demography of Ireland, highlighting Indians, who are now the third biggest foreign national group in Ireland, following Polish and UK citizens.
"Not many people know that almost 2 per cent of our population in Ireland are Indians. There are about 1,00,000 Indians now living in Ireland and contributing hugely to our society, economy and culture. Indians in Ireland are highly respected because of the professional skills that they bring to our country," said Kelly.
In 2022, the vast majority of Indians were living in counties Dublin and Meath, but, significant numbers also lived in counties Cork, Limerick and Galway, reported The Irish Times.