Wales has a "direct interest" in talks around the Northern Ireland Protocol succeeding and talks needs to be focused on "problem solving", according to the Welsh First Minister.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Mark Drakeford said "so much trade" flows between the island of Ireland and the UK and onto Europe through Welsh ports.
He was speaking ahead of the Ireland-Wales Forum, which will see a series of meetings taking place over the next two days in Dublin and Cork.
The ministerial forum was established last year when Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney brought a delegation to Wales.
He said they are looking forward to a "packed programme and profitable two days" and making further progress on the six areas in their joint action plan.
The six areas are climate change, housing, energy, education and culture and language policies.
Ireland is Wales' fourth biggest trade partner.
Speaking ahead of the forum Minister Coveney said: "It is an important opportunity to assess progress in our ambitious framework for Ireland Wales cooperation published last year.
"It is also an opportunity to deepen cooperation in important sectors such as renewable energy."
Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Michael McGrath, who will accompany Minister Coveney at the forum, said engagement was important "particularly given the wide range of projects and collaborative networks that have been built up through the Ireland Wales Programme."
The forum is designed to deepen links between the two governments after Brexit and is organised jointly by the Irish Consulate General in Cardiff and the Welsh Government Office in Dublin.
"There has been huge amount of progress across the whole agreement," Mr Drakeford said.
He said it will bring together ministers to exchange views and learning on key issues including renewable energy and education.
Separately, Mr Drakeford said it is "absolutely" in Wales's interest to have a stable and successful UK and that it is in the interest of Europe to have a government that is engaged in a constructive way with its closest and most important neighbours.
Mr Drakeford said he looks forward to when the British Prime Minister Liz Truss has "a moment" to pick up the phone and make contact as he referred to how her predecessors had taken this approach.
He said it is a "conspicuous difference this time" with Ms Truss not yet making contact.
"We will be very pleased to hear from her," he said.
Mr Drakeford said he is hopeful of Wales remaining part of the UK and said he is a believer in "powerful and entrenched devolution where decisions that affect only people in Wales are only taken by people in Wales but that also the UK benefits and Wales benefits from being part of each other."
He said he does not ever believe independence is the right course of action for Wales.
Mr Drakeford also referred to the "shock and sorrow" of what happened in Creeslough last Friday and he said it has been on people's minds also in Wales this last week.
