Ireland to stay in eurozone

Ireland has no plans to withdraw from the eurozone, Irish Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Eamon Gilmore said on Monday. Ireland will continue working with the EU members to address the eurozone problems, Gilmore said at a news conference after a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow. Gilmore began a two-day visit to Russia on Sunday aimed at deepening political and economic links between the two countries. Ireland is experiencing serious debt problems, similar to those in Greece. Speaking in advance of his visit, he said the trip attested to the Government’s “emphasis on deepening and broadening further our political and economic relations with Russia”. Lavrov said Russia supports the EU bailout package. “We hope that it will be carried out… and that there will be no obstacles to its implementation,” he said. Last year, President Mary McAleese became the first Irish president to meet a Russian counterpart in the Kremlin, signing export deals worth more than 9 million euros.