Ireland is asovereign state in Europe occupying about five-sixths of the island of Ireland. It is a unitary parliamentary republic with an elected presidentserving as head of state. The head of government—called the Taoiseach—is nominated by the lower house of parliament (Dáil Éireann). The state shares its only land border with Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom. It is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the Celtic Sea to the south, Saint George's Channel to the south east, and the Irish Sea to the east. The modern Irish state gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1922 following a war of independence resulting in the Anglo-Irish Treaty, with Northern Ireland exercising an option to remain in the United Kingdom.
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