As Trump tries to blackmail EU countries and the UK into accepting his annexation of Greenland, Michelle O’Neill said his plan for tariffs from February 1 is “deeply concerning”.

She continued: “The economies of Ireland and the United States are closely linked, and for many years that relationship has positively supported jobs, investment, and prosperity on both sides. I will work with political and business leaders at home and internationally to protect our local businesses, our all-island economy and people’s livelihoods.”

You might think this is a bit like the Skibbereen Eagle “keeping an eye on the tsar of Russia”, but it’s not.

Sinn Féin has influence and reach, not least its 39 TDs in the Dáil, its senators and its MEPs in Brussels. It’s an all-Ireland party with ministers here running finance and economy in close contact with their colleagues in Dublin. The party is outward-looking and well-connected internationally, including in the US.

Trump’s deluded Davos boasts should alarm the world - The Irish News view

The contrast with unionism could not be greater, as evidenced by events after the, once again, uncontested appointment of the latest UUP leader and deputy, reportedly neither favoured by most UUP MLAs.

What was the first item on the agenda? Meeting the DUP to search for the shimmering Shangri-La of........

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