This article covers the political relationship between India and Ireland: its historical roots, visits at the level of President and Prime Minister, the first visit of an Indian External Affairs Minister to Ireland, regular ministerial exchanges, and the dialogue mechanisms between the two governments. It is based on the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) bilateral brief of May 2026, which states its information as on 31 May 2026.

According to the MEA brief of May 2026, India-Ireland interactions date back to the 19th century, when a significant number of Irishmen joined the British Civil Service and the medical, engineering and army services. During this period, Irish missionaries and educationists also spread out into all regions of India. The brief states that links were further strengthened by connections between the nationalist movements of the two countries from the early 1900s.

Formal diplomatic links between India and Ireland were established in 1947.

Presidential and Prime Ministerial visits

The brief records three Presidential visits from Ireland and two from India:

  • From Ireland: Eamon de Valera (1948), Patrick Hillery (1978) and Mary Robinson (1993).
  • From India: S. Radhakrishnan (1964) and Sanjiva Reddy (1982).

At Prime Ministerial level, Irish Prime Ministers Garret FitzGerald (1984) and Bertie Ahern (2006) visited India. From India, Pt. Nehru visited Ireland in 1949 and 1956, and PM Modi visited Dublin in 2015.

First visit by an External Affairs Minister

EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Ireland from 6-7 March 2025. The brief records this as the first ever visit of an Indian External Affairs Minister to Ireland.

During the visit, EAM called on the President of Ireland, Mr. Michael D Higgins, and held a bilateral meeting with his counterpart, Mr. Simon Harris. He also met the Minister of Higher Education and the former Prime Minister, Mr. Leo Varadkar. EAM interacted with Indian students at University College Dublin on "India's View of the World", interacted with the Indian community, and paid tributes to Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore.

Meetings on the sidelines of international events

EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar met his Irish counterpart, Mr. Simon Coveney, in February 2022 in the margins of the Munich Security Conference, and again at the UNGA in 2022. He met Mr. Simon Harris TD on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in February 2025.

Irish ministerial visits on St. Patrick's Day

The brief notes that since 2005 an Irish Minister has visited India on St. Patrick's Day, Ireland's National Day, except for a couple of years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Visits recorded in the brief include:

  • March 2019: Minister of State for Health, Mr. Jim Daly, visited Mumbai and Delhi.
  • March 2022: Mr. Robert Troy, Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, visited with a 3-member official delegation and met Minister of State for External Affairs Ms Meenakshi Lekhi. Their discussions covered bilateral relations and people-to-people contacts.
  • March 2023: Mr. Roderic O'Gorman, Minister of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, visited with Irish Government officials and representatives from Irish higher education institutions.
  • March 2024: Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Mr. Simon Coveney visited and met EAM Dr. Jaishankar.
  • March 2026: the Attorney General of Ireland, Mr. Rossa Fanning, visited India for the St. Patrick's Day celebrations.

Foreign Office Consultations

An Agreement on Foreign Office Consultations was signed in October 1993. The 9th round of consultations was held in New Delhi in October 2022, led by Secretary (West) on the Indian side and the Deputy Secretary General on the Irish side, with discussions on bilateral, regional and global issues. As of the brief, the 10th round is due to take place in Dublin in 2026.

Agreements in force and in preparation

The brief lists agreements and MoUs signed between the two countries from 1991 onwards, and several more in the pipeline. They cover air transport, foreign office consultations, information technology, taxation, culture, science and technology, employment of diplomats' dependants, and ICCR academic chairs. Those in the pipeline concern education exchange, health and medicine, mobility and migration, visa free travel for holders of diplomatic and official passports, and cultural exchanges. Each is described in the article in this guide that covers its subject.