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Consular Conversations: Ireland
Wednesday, April 16, 2025
Miller & Martin
When Irish Consul General Frank Groome earned his Ph.D. in diplomatic history, he didn’t know just how well it would set him up for the future across the pond in Atlanta.
Mr. Groome focused on the commercial ties between the U.S. and Europe during the Cold War, giving him a strong feel for transatlantic trade and a deeper interest in economics.
Fast forward to August 2024, and Mr. Groome left a post in the Netherlands for Atlanta to helm a consulate that opened in 2010 as the first Irish mission established in the U.S. in some seven decades.
The relative novelty of this mission has enabled a more proactive approach in setting the agenda for “Team Ireland” in the Southeast U.S., a region drawing more attention from the Department of Foreign Affairs as its political and economic clout grows. That’s evidenced by the fact that Mr. Groome has already hosted two cabinet-level ministers, on top of the five welcomed by his predecessor.
“That economics focus is always a focus for me, and it’s become a key pillar here for us,” he said.
While the region has a very active Irish diaspora, it’s not “driving the train” as much as those in Boston or New York, Mr. Groome said.
“(In Atlanta), we have a space to focus, get in the weeds of activity, and that’s attractive to me, to be able to drive forward the relationship,” he added.
In a wide-ranging interview, Mr. Groome discussed sports diplomacy, including his arrival in Atlanta just as Georgia Tech was traveling to Dublin to defeat Florida State in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic. He described the breadth of engagements during that trip, and how Georgia Southern University is interrogating the state’s genealogical, cultural and historical trade ties with Wexford, Ireland, through the campus it opened to complement Savannah’s TradeBridge partnership.
He also talked about educational ties more broadly, how Ireland is dealing with the whiplash of Trump 2.0 tariffs, and how Ireland is helping its companies invest in the U.S. through the new office of Enterprise Ireland opened in Atlanta around St. Patrick’s Day.
Joining Mr. Groome on stage to continue the conversation were Atlanta native Anderson Graves, the new head of the Enterprise Ireland office, and Foster Finley, a board member Irish American Chamber Southeast, which relaunched during the holiday week after a COVID-induced hiatus.
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Trevor Williams,
Managing Editor, Global Atlanta
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Frank Groome,
Consul General of Ireland in Atlanta
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“We are very vulnerable to shifts in tariff policies and shifts in particular in the U.S. There’s no doubt about that,” he said, pointing to the pharmaceutical sector in particular. But he also noted that there could be some room for cooler heads to prevail during the 90-day pause on Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs: “We want a calm, measured, thoughtful and comprehensive discussion and negotiation. That’s what we’re open to; that’s what we want to have.”
Foster Finley
Irish American Chamber – Southeast
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“It’s the reach, and I think it’s the network.” -On how the Irish Chamber’s experienced board complements EI, the Consulate, Irish Network ATL and other organizations.
Anderson Graves
Senior Vice President, Consumer Retail & Retail Technologies at Enterprise Ireland — Head of Atlanta Office
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On Enterprise Ireland being tapped as the top VC fund in Europe by deal flow:
“We look like a VC, but we actually are not a VC, because we’re not for a profit. We’re more about driving impact for Irish exports and job creation in Ireland.”
EI has set up a tariff task force to help its client companies, 70 percent of which are in life sciences, get help with complexities in U.S. trade policy. She saw parallels to another disruption in 2016:
“Thinking about what other what Irish companies have gone through in the past, I think Brexit is kind of what we’re drawing a lot of inspiration from, and how we supported companies through that.”
“Both of our economies benefit hugely from this trade and investment connection. But ultimately we lose out if we start to break things apart.”
frank groome, consul general of ireland, on the fact that FDi in both directions creates 200,000 jobs for each country
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