Minister Byrne joins President Sandu to mark Ireland-Moldova relationship

Minister Byrne joins President Sandu to mark Ireland-Moldova relationship

• From: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

• Published on: 8 April 2026
• Last updated on: 8 April 2026

Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence, Thomas Byrne TD, today (8 April) joined the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, at a reception hosted by the Moldovan Embassy as part of President Sandu's official visit to Ireland.

In his address at the reception, Minister Byrne highlighted the focus that Ireland will place on EU enlargement, during the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU.

Minister Byrne commented: "Ireland, as a small nation, has experienced the political and economic benefits of EU membership. We believe that other European nations that align themselves with EU values and standards, and do the preparatory work, should be afforded the same opportunities."

The Minister continued: "I believe that EU membership would have a positive and transformative impact on Moldovan society. We have also seen how smaller nations, like Ireland, can shape the EU agenda. This is particularly at the front of our minds as we prepare to hold the EU Presidency from 1 July."

Minister Byrne commended Moldova on the significant reform work carried out to date, demonstrated in the European Commission's 2025 Enlargement Package reports, crediting Moldova with making the largest progress of all the candidate countries last year.

On advancing the EU enlargement agenda against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine, the Minister said: "I recognise that Moldova has undertaken significant reform while simultaneously facing unprecedented challenges, as it navigates the spill over impact from Russia's unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine, as well as the direct efforts to derail the democratic process. The current geopolitical context presents challenges on many fronts, and it demands an emphatic European response. With EU enlargement, we have a generational opportunity to unify our continent further. The EU must seize this renewed momentum, which remains the EU's best tool to ensure our shared security and prosperity."

In March of this year, Minister Byrne was the first Irish Government representative to visit Moldova, as part of the St Patrick's Day Ministerial programme.

The Minister acknowledged the work carried out by Moldovan Ambassador to Ireland, Jana Costachi, and highlighted the contributions made by the Moldovan community in Ireland. Councillor Emma Blain attended the reception, on behalf of the Lord Mayor of Dublin. Business, media and academia representatives as well as members of the diplomatic corps also attended.

During her official visit today, President Sandu met with President Connolly, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Tánaiste Simon Harris and members of the Oireachtas. The President also hosted a discussion in Trinity College Dublin on "Moldova's Reforms and Resilience on the EU Path".

Notes:

The 2025 Enlargement Package is a comprehensive set of country reports published by the European Commission assessing progress in reforms by candidate, and potential candidate, countries to the European Union. Country reports and recommendations are available here.