The Taoiseach is in Brussels today to attend his last European Council meeting before the Cabinet reshuffle.
Leaders will discuss further sanctions on Russia and reconfirm support for Ukraine.
At the last European Council in October, outgoing Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi was given a long round of applause and a video presentation titled ‘Arrivederchi Mario’ as he bowed out of his last Council summit.
It’s unclear whether there will be a video tribute for Micheal Martin after the working dinner tonight as he attends his last meeting as Taoiseach.
In reality, it will be far from his last trip to Brussels, though he’ll now be relegated to those other meetings which happen around a summit between political party leaders who aren’t their country’s leaders.
The changeover of the job of Taoiseach with Leo Varadkar was pushed back two days to give him this swansong, one last appearance on the European stage before the Cabinet reshuffle.
It’s a busy agenda and like most recent summits the war in Ukraine dominates - with a focus on sanctions and supporting citizens there
Ensuring future supply of energy is also high on the agenda, along with the EU’s transatlantic relationship with the United States
