Joe Biden rings peace bell for the US and Irish ancestors on visit with Michael D Higgins
US president Joe Biden rings the Peace Bell at Áras an Uachtaráin accompanied by Sabina Higgins and President Micheal D Higgins. Picture: Maxwells
US president Joe Biden has met with his counterpart Michael D Higgins, ahead of the US president’s historic address to the Oireachtas later on Thursday.
Mr Biden is expected to set out a “shared vision” for the future of US-Irish relations when he address both houses of the Oireachtas, part of a series of ceremonies and honours to be held for the world leader.
The US president emerged wearing sunglasses and a broad smile as he walked the red carpet to be met by Mr Higgins and his wife Sabine.
It is Mr Biden’s third visit to the residence, but his first as president.
He was taken to the drawing room to meet Tánaiste Micheál Martin and Ireland’s first female secretary-general to the president, Orla O’Hanrahan.
Mr Biden signed the visitors book in the historic State Reception Room, telling President Higgins "it’s a pleasure to be back”.
Asked what he had written in the visitors book, Mr Biden said he had quoted an Irish proverb, “your feet will bring you where your heart is”, adding: “It’s an honour to return”, and made a reference to returning to the home of his ancestors, pledging to recommit to peace, equity and dignity.
Mr Biden told reporters: “I’m not going home. Isn’t this an incredible place? All you American reporters, it’s just like the White House, right?”
He also planted an Irish oak in the grounds of Áras an Uachtaráin and rang the Peace Bell, which was unveiled in 2008 to mark the 10th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.
Mr Biden rang it four times before shaking hands with President Higgins. The ringing of the symbolic bell is often an honour bestowed on visiting world leaders and dignitaries.
He said he was ringing the bell for the US, his ancestral home of Ireland, for his ancestors and for peace.
Mr Biden follows in the footsteps of US presidents John F Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama who have all planted trees in the grounds, as have Pope John Paul II and the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Speaking to President Higgins, Mr Biden said: “Mr President, I asked whether or not my great-grandchildren can come back and climb this tree when it grows?”
“Oh absolutely,” replied President Higgins.
The White House said Northern Ireland and Ukraine would top the agenda as Mr Biden meets Mr Higgins and the Taoiseach later, with US National Security Council senior director Amanda Sloat telling reporters that his Oireachtas address will refer to areas of close partnership between both countries and “setting out a shared vision for the future”.
Mr Biden will be accompanied to Leinster House by Marie Heaney, the widow of his favourite poet, Seamus Heaney.
Nine members of the US Congress, one senator as well as Mr Biden’s sister Valerie and son Hunter will attend the event, as well as former Irish president Mary McAleese, two former taoisigh, Bertie Ahern and Enda Kenny, Northern Ireland political leaders and Larysa Gerasko, ambassador of Ukraine to Ireland.
Mr Biden, who is on a four-day trip to the island, will attend a banquet in his honour at Dublin Castle hosted by the Taoiseach in the evening.
His first full day of engagements on Wednesday began in Northern Ireland, where he delivered a keynote address in Belfast.
In his speech to Ulster University, Mr Biden expressed the hope of a return to powersharing at Stormont, saying a stable devolved government could deliver an economic windfall for the region.
His visit north of the border came as the region marks the 25th anniversary of the landmark Good Friday peace accord.
After his address in Belfast, Mr Biden travelled to Dublin and from there to Co Louth, where he can trace some of his Irish ancestors.
In a speech at a pub in Dundalk, he described how he felt as though he had come home.
His remarks also included an apparent gaffe when he appeared to confuse the All Blacks rugby team with the Black and Tans, a contentious police unit from Ireland’s War of Independence era.
Asked about that gaffe, Ms Sloat said: “It was clear what the president was referring to, it was certainly clear to his cousins setting next to him.”
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
