The European Union needs to look beyond its borders to tackle global issues such as climate change, President Mary McAleese said today.
Mrs McAleese was speaking at Berlin's Humboldt University during a three-day official visit to Germany.
In a speech to academics and students, the president said the EU needed to look outwards at the changing global environment.
"Our world is changing at an unrelenting pace. Many of the challenges now faced by national governments defy the boundaries of states and even those of Europe," Mrs McAleese said. "An issue like climate change, for example, demands a broader response."
Mrs McAleese also met Minister-President of Bavaria Guenter Beckstein and members of the Irish community in the region. Tomorrow, she will visit St Killian's Cathedral in Wurzburg before travelling onto Stromberg and Wiesbaden.
She will meet European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet in Frankfurt before returning to Dublin.
PA