At a time of heightened concerns over renewed sectarian conflict, the Biden administration has appointed Joe Kennedy III, the grandnephew of the nation’s first Irish Catholic president, as liaison to Northern Ireland.
“Today we are announcing the appointment of Joe Kennedy III as the U.S. Special Envoy to Northern Ireland for Economic Affairs. In this capacity, he will focus on advancing economic development and investment opportunities in Northern Ireland to the benefit of all communities as well as strengthening people-to-people ties between the United States and Northern Ireland,” the State Department said in a Monday release.
The appointment of Kennedy, a former Massachusetts congressman, comes following the 2020 withdrawal of the U.K. from the European Union’s trade zone and the 2021 establishment of a customs agreement being called the Northern Ireland Protocols.
