US President Joe Biden will begin a four-day trip to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in Belfast on 11 April, the White House has confirmed.
President Biden will begin his trip in Belfast to mark the 25th Anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.
He will also hold various engagements, including in Dublin, County Louth, and County Mayo.
The President is also expected to meet Irish President Michael D Higgins.
In a statement, the White House said the President will travel to the United Kingdom and Ireland from April 11-14 adding that the trip would mark “the tremendous progress since the signing of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement 25 years ago”.
Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar said he was “delighted” that President Biden would be visiting Ireland.
“When we spoke recently in the White House, President Biden was clear that in celebrating the Good Friday Agreement, we should be looking ahead, not backwards,” he said.
He said the involvement of the United States and of President Biden personally had been “essential to the peace process in Ireland”.
“From its earliest uncertain beginnings to the making of the Good Friday Agreement, in good days and bad, the US has always been at our side,” said Mr Varadkar.
“So it’s fitting that President Biden will be here to mark this significant milestone with us.”
‘Deep, historic ties’
In 2016, Joe Biden visited, the Republic of Ireland during his time as vice president, and went on a tour of his ancestral home in County Mayo.
Last week, the president said he still planned to visit Northern Ireland despite MI5’s decision to increase the terrorism threat level to “severe”.
During next week’s visit the president will hold various engagements in the Republic of Ireland, including those in Dublin, County Louth and County Mayo, where he will “deliver an address to celebrate the deep, historic ties that link our countries and people.”
Good Friday Agreement anniversary
Former US President Bill Clinton, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern are among those expected to visit Northern Ireland for commemorative events.
Both Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University (UU) are hosting events to mark the anniversary
Large, silent video portraits of the 14 politicians who negotiated the peace deal will be displayed at UU’s Belfast campus from 15 to 20 April.
The university is also launching a new leadership programme, a tourism summit and an education project.
Further details of President Biden’s trip have yet to be released.
Source – BBC News
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