US president Joe Biden has accepted an invitation to address the Houses of the Oireachtas next week, TDs and Senators have been told.
The address will take place on Thursday with the Dáil and Seanad being recalled from their Easter break for the occasion.
Confirmation of the address came on Wednesday afternoon in a note sent by Ceann Comhairle Seán Ó Fearghaíl and Seanad Cathaoireleach Jerry Buttimer to all Oireachtas members.
In a statement later, the Houses of the Oireachtas said: “Given the deep, historic ties between Ireland and the United States of America, both the Ceann Comhairle and the Cathaoirleach are very much looking forward to welcoming the President to Leinster House.”
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Mr Biden will become the fourth president of the United States to address the Oireachtas, following John F Kennedy in 1963, Ronald Reagan in 1984 and Bill Clinton in 1995. It is understood that personnel from the US secret service visited Leinster House in recent days in preparation for a possible address.
Those who have addressed both Houses of the Oireachtas previously include Nelson Mandela, French president Francois Mitterand and British prime minister Tony Blair. The speaker of House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi addressed both houses in 2019. The most recent person to address both houses was the European Parliament president Roberta Metsola in February.
In its first statement on the visit, issued on Wednesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Mr Biden will first travel to Belfast “to mark the tremendous progress since the signing of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement 25 years ago”.
She said the president would “underscore the readiness of the United States to support Northern Ireland’s vast economic potential to the benefit of all communities”.
Mr Biden will be in Belfast on April 11th and 12th before travelling to Dublin. He will be in the Republic from April 12th to 14th.
“He will discuss our close cooperation on the full range of shared global challenges. He will also hold various engagements, including 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.”
Mr Biden will deliver a public address outside St Muredach’s Cathedral in Ballina on April 14th. Those wishing to attend are asked to register on the US embassy website.
US ambassador to Ireland Claire Cronin said she was “excited” that plans had been confirmed for what would be “a once in a generation event”.
“Ireland has a special place in President Biden’s heart, and I know this visit will be very special to him. I have no doubt that he will receive a Céad Míle Fáilte from the people of Ireland,” she said in a statement.
In a statement, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said he was looking forward to the forthcoming visit.
“Joe Biden has always been a friend of Ireland. Over many decades, and to this day, he has supported the cause of peace in Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement. He stood with us as we navigated the difficult consequences of Brexit,” he said.
“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. We need to continue working together as true partners to fulfil the potential of all the people who call this island their home.
“His visit is an opportunity to celebrate and renew the strong political, economic and personal ties that bind our two countries together. Above all, it is an opportunity to welcome a great Irish-American President home.”
Organisers preparing for Mr Biden’s five-day visit had been scouting for a location for the 46th US president’s main public address. The public speech in Ballina, home of Mr Biden’s ancestral family, the Blewitts, would be the culmination of the president’s visit.
He will travel to Dublin the following day and spend the remainder of the visit in the Republic fulfilling official engagements, meeting Mr Varadkar and President Michael D Higgins along with day trips to Mayo and Louth. He is scheduled to fly back to the US the day after the Ballina speech on April 15th.
Mr Biden’s public address in Co Mayo would be in contrast to the Dublin-based speech delivered by one of his predecessors, president Barack Obama, who spoke to a crowd of tens of thousands on College Green when he visited in 2011.
