Ireland Waits Uneasily for the Brexit Blow to Fall

By: Eugene Chausovsky

In the wake of the United Kingdom's vote to leave the European Union, countries across the Continent are nervously reassessing their own positions and outlooks within the bloc. Though London's formal negotiations with Brussels to exit the union have not begun — and will take several years to complete once they do — several European states have wasted no time in voicing their demands for immediate reform. Spain and Italy are pushing for more flexible spending measures, while Poland and Hungary are calling for the repatriation of certain powers from Brussels to national parliaments.

But of all the European Union's members, perhaps none is more directly affected by the British decision than the Republic of Ireland. The United Kingdom is Ireland's biggest trade partner, and Dublin shares a border (and complicated relationship) with the British region of Northern Ireland. Economically and politically, Ireland has a lot to lose from the United Kingdom's departure from the bloc. But given the Brexit's unprecedented nature and the uncertainty surrounding its management, just how big an effect it will have on Ireland is still unclear.