Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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17. To ask the Taoiseach if he will report on his visit to the UN and the United States of America; and the meetings he held and groups he met. [30644/18]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy's question relates to my visit to New York in July, to take part in a series of events marking the launch of Ireland’s election campaign for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2021-2022 term.

On Monday 2 July, I participated in a ceremony marking 60 years of Ireland’s participation on UN peacekeeping operations, and paying tribute to the 88 members of the Defence Forces who have lost their lives while serving on peackeeping missions.

I then attended the official launch of Ireland's UN Security Council campaign at UN Headquarters, together with Tánaiste, former President Mary Robinson, U2’s Bono, and over 400 guests including the UN diplomatic corps. The preceding evening, as part of their support for Ireland’s campaign, U2 hosted international diplomats based at the UN at their concert in Madison Square Garden, an event which I and the Tánaiste also attended.

I also met a group of UN African Permanent Representatives to discuss the Ireland-Africa relationship and Ireland's candidature for the UN Security Council.

I also took the opportunity to meet a cross-section of young Irish and Irish-Americans living in New York, and visited the New York Stock Exchange, where I met with representatives of Irish and American businesses, and rang the opening bell.

I made a return visit to the UN earlier this week, to represent Ireland at the Nelson Mandela Peace Summit, where leaders and representatives of more than 130 countries gathered to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Nelson Mandela, as part of the week's events around the United Nations General Assembly.