Biden Arrives in Northern Ireland... "300 Police Officers and 11.6 Billion Won Tight Security"

by Jo Youjin

Published 12 Apr.2023 06:33(KST)

Meeting with US and UK Leaders

U.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on the 11th (local time) to begin a four-day visit to the island of Ireland, according to major foreign media including the UK Guardian.

Air Force One carrying President Biden arrived at Belfast Airport just after 9 p.m., where UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak greeted him. Accompanying Prime Minister Sunak were the U.S. Ambassador to the UK, the U.S. Consul General in Belfast, and Chris Heaton-Harris, the Northern Ireland Secretary.

The Guardian reported that 300 police officers were deployed for this visit, with security costs amounting to ?7 million (approximately 11.6 billion KRW). All manhole covers on the roads were lifted and inspected, and explosive detection dogs were deployed to search every room in the hotel where President Biden would stay, indicating extremely tight security.

The main purpose of President Biden’s visit is to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Belfast (Good Friday) Peace Agreement and to reconnect with his Irish roots.

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Before departure, he told reporters that the top priority is to maintain peace and resolve the political deadlock in the Northern Ireland Assembly following Brexit. He is expected to express support for peace and prosperity on the island of Ireland during his speech at Ulster University in Belfast on the 12th.

The Northern Ireland Assembly has been paralyzed for over a year because the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), a federalist party, has refused to participate in the power-sharing government in protest against the trade barriers established between the mainland and Northern Ireland after Brexit.

President Biden is scheduled to have a private meeting with Prime Minister Sunak for about 30 minutes before his speech. He will then travel to Ireland to visit villages where his distant relatives live, emphasizing the close relationship between the two countries, and will deliver a speech at the Irish Parliament in Dublin.

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

On the same day, police discovered four items suspected to be pipe bombs at a cemetery in Londonderry, about 110 km from Belfast. The previous day, Irish nationalist armed groups held an unauthorized rally in the area and threw Molotov cocktails at police vehicles.

Meanwhile, accompanying President Biden on this visit, in addition to the official delegation, were his second son Hunter Biden and his pro-Democratic sister and longtime political advisor Valerie Biden Owens.