Ireland's Prime Minister (Taoiseach) Leo Varadkar holds a news conference after a European Union summit in Brussels, Belgium March 22, 2019. REUTERS/Toby Melville

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Northern Ireland must be treated differently from the rest of the United Kingdom immediately after a no-deal Brexit if a hard border on the island of Ireland is to be avoided, Ireland’s Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Wednesday.

Varadkar said British commentators had misrepresented Ireland’s position in recent days by saying Dublin had accepted a hard border could be avoided using technology around the border if Britain crashes out without a deal.

“Let there be no doubt in this house or in Westminster that when I talk about special arrangements I mean treating Northern Ireland differently from the rest of the United Kingdom and it is the UK’s proposal to do exactly that,” Varadkar told the Irish parliament.