Dec. 19 (UPI) — The Biden administration announced the appointment of former U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy III to the role of special envoy to Northern Ireland for economic affairs.
Kennedy, who served as the representative of Massachusetts’ Fourth Congressional District from 2013 to 2021, will be in charge of exploring economic opportunities in Northern Ireland.
He succeeds another former U.S. Rep. Mick Mulvaney, who was appointed by President Donald Trump.
“An incredible honor to be appointed Special Envoy to Northern Ireland for Economic Affairs,” Kennedy tweeted.
“Look [forward] to working with the Biden Admin to reaffirm U.S. commitment to Northern Ireland and to promote economic prosperity and opportunity for all its people.”
The 42-year-old is the grandson of former Attorney General and Senator Robert F. Kennedy. He has practiced as an attorney and has degrees from Stanford and Harvard.
“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 press release.
Northern Ireland’s economy was once severely hampered by socio-political turmoil but it has grown since the creation of the International Fund for Ireland and the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.
The Good Friday Agreement brought an end to more than three decades of violence, known as the Troubles, by setting up a new government and creating cooperation with Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom.
Northern Ireland’s main trade partners outside of Ireland are the United States and China. It trades about $2 billion in goods to the United States annually while doing about $5.3 billion in trade business with the rest of the world. In 2021, it exported more goods than it imported.
