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Agrees on need for close working relations with all three, and plans for follow up meetings

An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar has spoken by phone today with the French President Emmanuel Macron, the Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel, and British Prime Minister Theresa May.

In each case the leaders congratulated the Taoiseach on his election and looked forward to working closely with him in the times ahead.

President Macron and the Taoiseach spoke about working together to advance the EU reform agenda, noting that there were many areas of common interest between Ireland and France. They also discussed Brexit. They looked forward to seeing each other at the European Council in Brussels next week and agreed to explore options for an early bilateral meeting.

Chancellor Merkel discussed the Northern Ireland talks and spoke about the renewed closeness of relations between Germany and France being a positive force for the future of the EU. They also discussed Brexit, and agreed to meet for more substantive discussions in Brussels next week.

The Taoiseach extended the Government's sympathies to Prime Minister May on the tragic fire in London. They reiterated the shared objectives of avoiding a hard border, maintaining the common travel area and supporting the Good Friday Agreement. They also discussed the ongoing political discussions in London and in Belfast, agreeing on the need to have the Northern Ireland Executive up and running as quickly as possible, and they discussed Brexit. They noted they would each be meeting with the Northern Ireland parties over coming days and agreed that the Taoiseach would meet with the Prime Minister in the very near future to continue their discussions.

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