US President Joe Biden will not visit Stormont during his trip to Northern Ireland next week due to logistical reasons, but it’s speculated that politics could also have played a role. Biden’s original visit had been hoped to mark the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Belfast Agreement. Though the Northern Assembly and Executive are not currently functioning due to the DUP continuing to boycott powersharing institutions, officials have stressed that Biden’s visit to Northern Ireland is a “manifestation of his genuine commitment to the people.”

US President Joe Biden will not visit Stormont, the Northern Ireland Assembly, during his upcoming visit to the country due to logistics. Biden had been invited by the Speaker to address the Assembly to mark the 25th anniversary of the Belfast Agreement but the Northern Assembly and Executive are not functioning because the DUP is continuing to boycott the powersharing institutions over its protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements. The pared-down visit has prompted speculation that the decision was taken for political reasons. However, Tánaiste Micheál Martin and Northern Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris rejected any suggestion the visit was a snub and emphasised it was “positive” that Biden was visiting the North. Biden is expected to arrive in Northern Ireland on the evening of Tuesday 11th and will carry out only one engagement, at Ulster University on Wednesday before departing for Dublin. He will visit Co Louth and Co Mayo, where he has ancestral roots during his trip, which will include a public address outside St Muredach’s Cathedral in Ballina on Friday evening.