Planning starts for Biden visit

US PRESIDENT Joe Biden is to make a three-day trip to Ireland this October, it was revealed yesterday.

Mr Biden, pictured, is expected to travel to Dublin to meet President Michael D Higgins and the Coalition leaders, then travel to Taoiseach Micheál Martin’s home city of Cork and also visit Louth, from where his ancestors hail.

This comes after Mr Martin formally invited President Biden to visit Ireland during the virtual St Patrick’s Day meeting in March, when the Taoiseach was unable to make his planned visit to the White House after he contracted Covid.

Security sources involved in preparations confirmed to the Irish Mail on Sunday that plans are under way for the trip and gardaí have been told US Secret Service officers will travel to Ireland next month ahead of it. A senior security source said: ‘We have been told to start putting everything in place for a reconnaissance by the Secret Service during the summer and setting up the transport infrastructure.’

However, they added: ‘The proviso is that if the Ukrainian war is still going on and any events connected to that are particularly critical, then all bets are off.’