Europe, despite the bedrock foundations of its treaties from the Treaty of Rome onwards, is built on alliances; not on intimidation, but on compromise; not on force majeure, but on diversity; and not on uniformity. Ireland has always punched above its weight. I remember having the privilege of being a member of a parliamentary delegation to Cairo two years ago. I was in the company of the Deputy Foreign Minister of Egypt who said that, before he had visited Ireland, he thought it was a much larger place. The phrase stuck with me because we have punched above our weight internationally. We are far bigger in the world of international diplomacy, politics and economics than our geographical size suggests. When one compares our size with other countries in Europe, we are certainly a giant.