On day two of his Irish visit, US President Joe Biden met with President Michael D Higgins and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar before giving a speech to Ireland’s Houses of the Oireachtas. They discussed the ties between the US and Ireland and the 25th anniversary of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement, reaffirming their support for expanding its peace dividend. Later, he attended a state banquet at Dublin Castle. Biden also watched a youth Gaelic sports demonstration and met with representatives of St Brigid’s GAA club in Castleknock. The event was almost disrupted by a sliotar, which nearly hit Biden in the head. Various Irish politicians and figures, as well as guests like RTE’s Ryan Tubridy and GAA commentator Joe Brolly, were in attendance at the Oireachtas speech. Biden praised strong Irish-American relations, while Varadkar commended Biden’s personal leadership in securing peace in Ireland and protecting democracy in Europe. The US president also briefly discussed the investigation into a major leak of classified information at the Pentagon.
