Editing Foreign relations of Ireland (section)

===China===

[[File:Irish Embassy in Beijing.JPG|thumb|right|300px|Embassy of Ireland in [[Beijing]]]]

{{See also|China–Ireland relations}}

Ireland's official relationship with the People's Republic of China began on 22 June 1979.<ref>Centre for Asian Studies, University Collete Dublin, China the Emerging Power: Prospects for Sino-Irish Relations, By Keisha Carty, Asia Correspondent, The Irish Times</ref> Following his visit to China in 1999, former [[Taoiseach]] [[Bertie Ahern]] authorised the establishment of an Asia Strategy.<ref name="ReferenceA">Irish Department of Foreign Affairs: a Decade of the Asia Strategy</ref> This Strategy aimed to ensure that the Irish Government and Irish enterprise work coherently to enhance the important relationships between Ireland and Asia.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> In recent years due to the rapid expansion of the Chinese economy, China is becoming a key trade partner of Ireland, with over $6bn worth of [[bilateral trade]] between the two countries in 2010. In July 2013, the [[Tánaiste]] and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade were invited to China by the Chinese foreign minister [[Wang Yi (politician)|Wang Yi]] on a trade mission to boost both investment and political ties between the two countries.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.dfa.ie/home/index.aspx?id=89728 | title=Tánaiste begins four-day political and economic mission to China | publisher=Department of Foreign Affairs | date=29 July 2013 | access-date=29 October 2013 | archive-date=4 October 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004115543/http://www.dfa.ie/home/index.aspx?id=89728 | url-status=live }}</ref>

Ireland has raised its concerns in the area of human rights with China on several occasions. On 12 May 2007, during a visit to Beijing, former [[Taoiseach]] [[Brian Cowen]] (then Minister for Finance) discussed human rights issues with Chinese Foreign Minister [[Li Zhaoxing]].<ref name="Wednesday 2007">[[Oireachtas]]: WRITTEN answer on Wednesday, 31 January 2007. Ref No: 43859/06</ref> Former Tánaiste [[Mary Coughlan (politician)|Mary Coughlan]] also raised human rights issues and concerns with visiting Chinese Vice-Premier [[Zeng Peiyan]].<ref name="Wednesday 2007"/> Ireland also participates in the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue.

Concerning the [[Political status of Taiwan|Taiwan issue]], Ireland follows a [[One-China policy]] and emphasizes the Taiwan issue being best settled through dialogue "between the parties concerned". Ireland does not maintain official diplomatic ties with Taiwan although there is a Taipei Representative Office that has a representative function about economic and cultural promotion.

In July 2019, the UN ambassadors from 22 nations, including Ireland, signed a joint letter to the [[United Nations Human Rights Council|UNHRC]] condemning China's [[Persecution of Uyghurs in China|mistreatment of the Uyghurs]] as well as its mistreatment of other minority groups, urging the Chinese government to close the [[Xinjiang internment camps]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Which Countries Are For or Against China's Xinjiang Policies? |url=https://thediplomat.com/2019/07/which-countries-are-for-or-against-chinas-xinjiang-policies/ |work=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]] |date=15 July 2019 |access-date=5 August 2019 |archive-date=16 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190716160658/https://thediplomat.com/2019/07/which-countries-are-for-or-against-chinas-xinjiang-policies/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=More than 20 ambassadors condemn China's treatment of Uighurs in Xinjiang |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/11/more-than-20-ambassadors-condemn-chinas-treatment-of-uighurs-in-xinjiang |work=The Guardian |date=11 July 2019 |access-date=5 August 2019 |archive-date=13 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191213195555/https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/11/more-than-20-ambassadors-condemn-chinas-treatment-of-uighurs-in-xinjiang |url-status=live }}</ref>