The minister for foreign affairs and trade () is a senior minister in the Government of Ireland and leads the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
The minister's office is located at Iveagh House, on St Stephen's Green in Dublin; "Iveagh House" is often used as a metonym for the department as a whole. From 1922 until 1971, the title of the office was Minister for External Affairs.
The office holder is Helen McEntee, TD. She is also Minister for Defence.
She is assisted by: Thomas Byrne, TD – Minister of State for European Affairs Neale Richmond, TD – Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora
Prominent ministers Over the years a number of ministers have redefined Ireland's relationship with the United Kingdom and have allowed Ireland to join and take a prominent role in organisations such as the European Union and the United Nations. These include:
Éamon de Valera – as the longest-serving minister for external affairs, de Valera served as President of the Council of the League of Nations, supported the admission of the Soviet Union, redefined Ireland's relationship with the United Kingdom and followed a policy of Irish neutrality during World War II. Seán MacBride – during MacBride's short tenure as Minister Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth, refused to join NATO and became a member of the Council of Europe. Frank Aiken – as another long-serving minister, Aiken adopted where possible an independent stance for Ireland at the United Nations and other international forums such as the Council of Europe. He introduced "Aiken Plan" to the UN in an effort to combine disarmament and peace in the Middle East and received the honour of being the first minister to sign the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in 1968 in Moscow. Liam Cosgrave – Minister from 1954 until 1957, Cosgrave took part in trade discussions and chaired the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in 1955. He also successfully presided over Ireland's admittance to the United Nations, defining Irish foreign policy for decades in his first address to the General Assembly in 1956. Patrick Hillery – during his four-year tenure Hillery negotiated Irish membership of the European Economic Community (EEC) and earned a high international profile when, in the aftermath of the killing of thirteen unarmed civilians in Derry by British Paratroopers (known as "Bloody Sunday"), he travelled to the United Nations in New York to demand UN involvement in peace-keeping on the streets of Northern Ireland. Garret FitzGerald – became Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1973, shortly after Ireland joined the European Economic Community (EEC), now known as the European Union (EU). With a background in economics and journalism, and as a politician of great intelligence and scope, his innovative views, energy and fluency in French ensured that Ireland's first Presidency of the European Council in the second half of 1975 was a success. He travelled extensively in his role as President of the General Affairs Council of the EEC. His tenure at the Department of Foreign Affairs helped him later to achieve the leadership of the party.
List of officeholders
Minister for Foreign Affairs, 1919–1922 Name Term of office Party Government(s) George Noble Plunkett 22 January 1919 26 August 1921 1st DM2nd DM Arthur Griffith(1st time) 26 August 1921 9 January 1922 3rd DM George Gavan Duffy 10 January 1922 25 July 1922 4th DM1st PG Arthur Griffith(2nd time) 26 July 1922 12 August 1922 4th DM1st PG Michael Hayes 21 August 1922 9 September 1922 4th DM1st PGMinister for External Affairs, 1922–1971 Name Term of office Party Government(s) Desmond FitzGerald 30 August 1922 23 June 1927 2nd PG5th DM1st EC2nd EC Kevin O'Higgins 23 June 1927 10 July 1927 3rd EC W. T. Cosgrave 10 July 1927 11 October 1927 3rd EC Patrick McGilligan 11 October 1927 9 March 1932 4th EC5th EC Éamon de Valera 9 March 1932 18 February 1948 6th EC7th EC8th EC1st2nd3rd4th Seán MacBride 18 February 1948v13 June 1951 5th Frank Aiken(1st time) 13 June 1951 2 June 1954 6th Liam Cosgrave 2 June 1954 20 March 1957 7th Frank Aiken(2nd time) 20 March 1957 2 July 1969 8th9th10th11th12th Patrick Hillery 2 July 1969 3 March 1971 13thMinister for Foreign Affairs, 1971–2011 Name Term of office Party Government(s) Patrick Hillery 3 March 1971 3 January 1973 13th Brian Lenihan(1st time) 3 January 1973 14 March 1973 13th Garret FitzGerald 14 March 1973 5 July 1977 14th Michael O'Kennedy 5 July 1977 11 December 1979 15th Brian Lenihan(2nd time) 12 December 1979 30 June 1981 16th John Kelly 30 June 1981 21 October 1981 17th James Dooge 21 October 1981 9 March 1982 17th Gerry Collins(1st time) 9 March 1982 14 December 1982 18th Peter Barry 14 December 1982 10 March 1987 19th Brian Lenihan(3rd time) 10 March 1987 12 July 1989 20th Gerry Collins(2nd time) 12 July 1989 11 February 1992 21st David Andrews(1st time) 11 February 1992 12 January 1993 22nd Dick Spring(1st time) 12 January 1993 17 November 1994 23rd Albert Reynolds 18 November 1994 15 December 1994 23rd Dick Spring(2nd time) 15 December 1994 26 June 1997 24th Ray Burke 26 June 1997 7 October 1997 25th David Andrews(2nd time) 8 October 1997 27 January 2000 25th Brian Cowen 27 January 2000 29 September 2004 25th26th Dermot Ahern 29 September 2004 7 May 2008 26th27th Micheál Martin 7 May 2008 19 January 2011 28th Brian Cowen(2nd time) 19 January 2011 9 March 2011 28thMinister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2011–2020 Name Term of office Party Government(s) Eamon Gilmore 9 March 2011 11 July 2014 29th Charles Flanagan 11 July 2014 14 June 2017 29th30th Simon Coveney 14 June 2017 27 June 2020 31stMinister for Foreign Affairs, 2020–2025 Name Term of office Party Government(s) Simon Coveney 27 June 2020 17 December 2022 32nd Micheál Martin(2nd time) 17 December 2022 23 January 2025 33rd34thMinister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2025–present Name Term of office Party Government(s) Simon Harris 23 January 2025 18 November 2025 35th Helen McEntee 18 November 2025 Incumbent 35th Notes
References
External links