Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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24. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has expressed his views publically or to the United States administration with regard to President Trump's recent derogatory remarks regarding African and Caribbean countries; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3496/18]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I am aware of the reported remarks by President Trump on Thursday, 11 January. I obviously completely disagree with the tenor and substance of those alleged comments. The immigrant experience has particular resonance for Irish people and Irish emigrants know what it is to not feel welcomed in a strange country. Our own experience of emigration from Ireland - and, in recent years, immigration to Ireland - has also given us an appreciation of the very positive contribution that migrants can make to a society, regardless of their background or nationality. That experience is reflected in our relations with other States, including with the United States with whom we share a commitment to the values of democracy and the rule of law, as well as respect for the rights and dignity of all, irrespective of origin, religion, or ethnicity.