Cyprus paired with Co. Leitrim for Ireland’s Council of EU presidency term

Cyprus has been “paired” with County Leitrim as part of Ireland’s preparations for its takeover of the Council of the European Union’s rotating presidency in the second half of this year.

Each of the EU’s 26 member states, Ireland itself aside, has been paired with a county in Ireland.

The Irish government said that during its six-month term as the holder of the Council of the EU’s rotating presidency, the ambassador of that member state and the Irish ambassador to it will “undertake a programme of public engagements focused on Ireland’s European relations and its role in the European Union”.

“In each country in the state, the ambassadors will participate in a range of public events, including talks at local libraries and visits to schools, as well as engaging with local authorities and local communities through sporting, community, youth, and civil society organisations,” it said.

It added that the visits “will help to strengthen links between counties across Ireland and other EU member states” and will “contribute to building Ireland’s relationship with its EU partners as Ireland takes on a significant leadership role at European level”.

Irish Foreign Minister Helen McEntee said that the country’s forthcoming six-month term is “an opportunity for us to reflect on what our European relationships mean, and the advantages as well as the responsibilities of our EU membership”.

She added that the initiative will “help to promote a national conversation on the importance of our EU membership and our European relationships against the background of a challenging global environment”.

County Leitrim is located in Ireland’s northwest, and borders Donegal to its north, Fermanagh and Cavan to its east, Longford and Roscommon to its south, and Sligo to its west.

It is Ireland’s smallest county by population, with just 35,199 people calling it home at the time of the 2022 census, and has the smallest coastline of any county which is not landlocked, with just a small 4.7-kilometre sliver between Sligo and Donegal touching the Atlantic.

The county town, Carrick-on-Shannon, has a population of 4,473, and is located on Ireland’s longest river, the Shannon.

Cyprus aside, other pairings include that County Cork was paired with France, County Dublin was paired with Greece, County Meath was paired with Italy, County Waterford was paired with Denmark, and County Wicklow was paired with Spain.

Ireland is set to take over the Council of the EU’s rotating presidency at the beginning of July, taking over from Cyprus, which began its own six-month term at the start of this month.

It will then hand over the responsibility to Lithuania, which will hold the rotating presidency in the first half of next year.