Belfast Agreement anniversary unlikely to be marked with visit of US President Joe Biden

Democratic Party congressman Brendan Boyle said that although President Biden is “anxious to visit Ireland” during his term in office, the trip will probably not take place before April.

The Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement was signed on April 10, 1998, creating a new powersharing executive and assembly at Stormont.

There have been some suggestions that President Biden would visit Northern Ireland to mark the anniversary, particularly as his predecessor Bill Clinton was a strong supporter of the peace process – visiting NI in November 1995 to encourage all those involved in the negotiations.

President Clinton also appointed Senator George Mitchell as Special Envoy for Northern Ireland to assist with the peace process.

However, speaking to BBC Radio’s Good Morning Ulster programme on Thursday, Congressman Boyle said: “Certainly, the President is anxious to visit Ireland, it’ll be a great celebration when it happens, a celebration of his roots, how far Ireland has come, literally better now than ever before.

“And the importance of the US-Irish relationship. But I don’t get the sense from the White House that it necessarily has to be in April or that Northern Ireland would take centre stage in it.

“Certainly I imagine that when he does visit Ireland it would include a visit to the north, but I don’t necessarily think it has to be in April.”

During the same interview, Mr Boyle also spoke about his meeting with NI Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris who is in on a visit to the US.

"Mr Boyle said: “I think he understands what a premium we put on Northern Ireland and the peace process here on Capitol Hill and in the United States.

"We certainly had very good discussions in terms of where the UK and the EU are now in terms of the protocol – ironing out any implementation issues that may exist, and I stressed to him that for the last six-and-a-half years… the US has made clear its position, and it is a bi-partisan one.

"That is, that we want to preserve the integrity of the Good Friday, or Belfast Agreement”.