US President Joe Biden arrives in Northern Ireland
Us President Joe Biden is greeted by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at Belfast International Airport on Tuesday night
US President Joe Biden arrived in Northern Ireland on Air Force One on Tuesday evening.
He was greeted as he exited the plane at Belfast International Airport by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Mr Biden is in Belfast to mark the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.
The 1998 peace deal brought an end to the Troubles – the decades-long violent conflict in Northern Ireland in which thousands of people were killed.
A huge security operation has been in place for most of Tuesday, with many city centre streets closed ahead of the visit.
While Mr Biden has praised what politicians did to secure peace in 1998, his visit is overshadowed by the fact that Northern Ireland’s power-sharing government is not functioning.
It collapsed last year when the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) – one of the biggest parties at Stormont – pulled out as part of a protest against post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland.
Ahead of his arrival, Mr Biden said: “I look forward to marking the anniversary in Belfast, underscoring the US commitment to preserving peace and encouraging prosperity.”
His visit to Belfast will be the first leg of a four-day stay in Ireland, during which he will discuss his Irish roots and meet Irish relatives.
Read more about Biden’s visit
Mr Biden’s trip comes two weeks after MI5 said the terrorism threat level in Northern Ireland had increased due to a rise in activity by dissident republicans.
During an illegal parade by dissident republicans in Londonderry on Monday petrol bombs were thrown at a police vehicle but the violence was confined to one area and ended a short time later.
On Tuesday, police found four suspected pipe bombs inside the grounds of the City Cemetery in Derry. They believe they were to be used in a planned attack on officers after Monday’s parade.
The president’s spokesman said Mr Biden was “more than comfortable making this trip” in spite of the terrorism threat.
On Monday, the 80-year-old dropped another hint that he would seek re-election in 2024, saying he planned to run again but was “not prepared to announce it yet”.
Police warned of traffic delays around Belfast International Airport as they facilitate the presidential motorcade on Tuesday night, with sections of the M2 and M5 motorways closed until 23:00 BST.
After travelling to the city, a distance of about 15 miles, Mr Biden is expected to stay overnight at a Belfast city centre hotel.
The main event of his visit to Northern Ireland will be a speech at the new Ulster University campus in Belfast on Wednesday.
It is understood that he will use that to underscore the willingness of the US to help to preserve what he sees as the peace and prosperity gained since the Good Friday Agreement.
The president is also expected to talk about how the US administration can support Northern Ireland’s economy.
The Good Friday Agreement explained in 90 seconds
He is expected to meet the leaders of Stormont’s five main political parties at some point during his brief time in the city.
There has been a huge police presence in the centre of Belfast since Monday afternoon and that will continue into Wednesday.
On Bedford Street, police officers are patrolling at barricades close to the Grand Central Hotel but pedestrians can pass through and businesses in the area are operating as usual.
Michelle O’Neill, the vice-president of Sinn Féin, the largest party at Stormont, said President Biden’s visit to mark the Good Friday Agreement anniversary would be a “special moment”.
“As we look back with pride at just how far we have all come, and all that has been achieved, we also look forward with hope, ambition, and opportunity for the next 25 years,” she added.
Earlier, former Prime Minister Tony Blair warned American influence on Northern Ireland politics had to be used with “care and sensitivity”.
“There’s a difference between influencing and pressurising – one tends to be positive and the other can be negative,” Mr Blair told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Image source, Reuters
US President Joe Biden on the steps of Air Force One after landing in Belfast on Tuesday evening
Former Irish ambassador to the US Daniel Mulhall said that Mr Biden would have preferred to have spoken to politicians at a functioning Stormont assembly.
But he added: “His speech [at Ulster University] will be very carefully crafted to get across the message that essentially America is here to help.”
Mr Sunak will not meet any of Northern Ireland’s political leaders while he is in Belfast to speak to the president.
Asked if that meant he had given up on getting the DUP back into power-sharing, the PM’s press secretary said: “No, not at all.”
Joe Biden will visit the locations marked on this map during his four days in Ireland
Declan Harvey and Tara Mills explore the text of the Good Friday Agreement – the deal which heralded the end of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
They look at what the agreement actually said and hear from some of the people who helped get the deal across the line.
Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-65208880?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA
