Joe Biden to Mark 25 Years of Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland
During his visit, the US president will meet with Rishi Sunak and representatives from all five of Northern Ireland’s major political parties. He will also emphasize his country’s “commitment to preserving the peace.”
Joe Biden, vice president of the United States, has stated that his upcoming trip to Ireland will demonstrate the nation’s commitment to peace and prosperity.
Later, he will arrive in Belfast, where he will be met by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak.
Following a bilateral meeting on Wednesday, President Biden will deliver remarks at Ulster University commemorating the Good Friday Agreement.
The president of the United States is also expected to meet with representatives of Northern Ireland’s five major political parties.
Before departing, he tweeted: “The leaders of Northern Ireland chose peace 25 years ago.
“The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement brought peace and an end to decades of violence.
“I am looking forward to celebrating the anniversary in Belfast, where I will emphasize the United States’ commitment to preserving peace and fostering prosperity.”
The president will visit Northern Ireland the day after petrol bombs were thrown at a police vehicle during an Easter parade in Londonderry.
White House spokesman John Kirby addressed the issue of violence at a press briefing, stating, “As for security concerns, you know we don’t ever discuss the security requirements of protecting the president, but the president is more than comfortable making this trip and he’s very excited to do so.”
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President Biden will meet with Irish President Michael Higgins and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in Ireland after Wednesday’s events in Belfast.
Biden scheduled to speak at a joint session of the Irish parliament and attend a banquet dinner at Dublin Castle.
The president’s participation in events commemorating the anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement demonstrates the United States’ influence in promoting peace in Northern Ireland.
He (Biden) known in Washington, D.C. as a politician who worked for decades to achieve a breakthrough 25 years ago.
In 2022, President Biden appointed Irish-American lobbying group leader Stella O’Leary as US observer to the International Fund for Ireland. It has promoted peace in Northern Ireland for decades.
Ms. O’Leary stated to Sky News: “The United States has contributed $500 million to this peace-maintenance fund. It existed since 1986 and served as the basis for the peace agreement. So it’s been a long time, and Joe Biden has been involved since the beginning.
“Together with many others, he facilitated the funding of the International Fund; this was a bipartisan effort.
“Ireland owes America a great debt for the role it has played, and he exemplifies that commitment.”
The purpose of Mr. Biden’s four-day trip will be both official and personal. As a descendant of nineteenth-century Irish immigrants to the United States, he will visit County Louth and County Mayo, from which his ancestors emigrated to the United States.
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In 1827, his great-great-great-grandfather, Edward Blewitt, sold 27,000 bricks to St. Muredach’s Cathedral in Ballina, County Mayo, where he will deliver a speech. The cathedral’s bricks sold in 1851 to fund Edward’s family’s trip to the US.
The Irish-American community in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where his ancestors settled and where he spent the first ten years of his life, celebrates the accomplishments of one of their own.
Nearly one-fourth of the city’s population has Irish ancestry. There are also members of the Joyce School of Irish Dance, where we gauged the local boy’s standing on the big stage.
20-year-old Brigid King told Sky News: “It is a very cool item. My family has always emphasized the importance of my Irish heritage. It is very cool to have someone in power who is Irish and very proud of his heritage, despite not having been born in Ireland. He is an individual who shares the same passion as I do.”
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