U.S President Joe Biden arrived in Dublin, capital of the Republic of Ireland on Wednesday, April 12, 2023, after delivering a speech at the Ulster University in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The U.S President, who cites his Irish heritage as a driving force in his life, is poised to trace his ancestral roots on the visit.
Upon his arrival in Dublin, Biden was greeted by Ireland’s Prime Minister, Leo Eric Varadkar, at the airport and then swung by a nearby fire station, where children of U.S. Embassy employees held American and Irish flags and signs that said “welcome home.”
Biden headed first for County Louth on Ireland’s east coast, home of his Finnegan ancestors. President Biden and Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister) Micheál Martin toured Carlingford Castle in County Louth.
The castle was built about 1190 and is also known as King John’s Castle.
U.S President was expected to carry out some engagements in the town and Dundalk before heading to a hotel in Dublin for the night.
Asked what he thinks of the weather, Biden smiled and said, “It’s fine, It’s Ireland”. He added that it feels “wonderful” to be in Ireland, and that he feels like he’s “coming home”.
The U.S President had also intended to visit a cemetery there, but that plan was scrapped because of uncooperative weather.
Biden’s mother’s family, the Finnegans, are from County Louth. According to a genealogy released by the White House, the president’s great-great-great-grandparents lived in Templetown and were married in 1813.
Their grandson, James Finnegan, born in 1840, emigrated to the United States with his family when he was 9 years old. The Finnegans settled in Seneca County, New York. James married Catherine Roche in 1846; they were Biden’s great-grandparents.
During his three days in Ireland, Biden also plans to address the parliament in Dublin, attend a gala dinner and visit County Mayo, another ancestral area.
U.S National Security Council Spokesman, John Kirby spoke to reporters at Ulster University before President Biden’s address.
“The President has said he would love to see the Assembly back up and running here,” he said. “Political stability will actually help engender more opportunities for trade or economic investment,” he added.
Kirby said the President wanted to “look for continued opportunities for deeper investment between our two countries and between our two economies”.
As for his trip to the Republic of Ireland, Kirby said Biden was “very much looking forward to being able to address the Irish parliament” and would hail the two countries’ “incredible partnership”.
Kirby divulged that the President would address the war in Ukraine, and applaud Ireland’s welcoming of thousands of refugees.
The Most ‘Irish’ Of All U.S. Presidents
According to the Irish Family History Centre, Joe Biden “is among the most ‘Irish’ of all U.S. Presidents.”
Ten of his 16 great-great grandparents were from the Emerald Isle, and they emigrated to the United States during the Great Famine of the mid-19th century. Biden is particularly fond of quoting Irish poetry, especially Seamus Heaney.
Biden’s affinity for Heaney dates back at least to an earlier presidential run in 2008, when he lost the nomination to Barack Obama and eventually became his running mate.
In a speech early in his own campaign, Biden observed that he liked to quote Irish poets because they are “the best poets.” He listed Heaney as his preferred “contemporary” Irish bard, and referred to Heaney’s words from “The Cure at Troy,” saying he believed they were reflected in “the sentiments and hearts of the vast majority of the American people.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Biden marked the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland. The U.S.-brokered deal brought peace to an area of the United Kingdom where years of sectarian violence known as “the Troubles” left some 3,600 people killed in bombings and other attacks.
However, recent political turmoil has left Northern Ireland without a functioning government, rattling the foundations of the Good Friday Agreement.
In addition, a top police official was shot and injured in February, an attack that authorities have blamed on Irish Republican Army dissidents opposed to the peace process.
“The enemies of peace will not prevail,” Biden said. “Northern Ireland will not go back, pray God,” he added.
READ ALSO: Bright Future For Northern Ireland Is “Just Beginning”- Biden
