Obama hopes to appoint new US ambassador to Ireland soon

President Obama has told the Taoiseach Enda Kenny he is planning to appoint a new ambassador for Ireland, but he is not sure how long the process will take.

The last US ambassador, Dan Rooney, resigned 15 months ago.

The Taoiseach is in the US for St Patrick's Day celebrations.

He said he raised the issue of an ambassador with President Obama when he met him at the White House.

“I mentioned that to the President, he’s intent on dealing with it.

“It is a matter exclusively for the President, we hope that it can be dealt with pretty soon,” said Kenny.