London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 10, 2026

Rishi Sunak praises Good Friday Agreement ahead of Joe Biden visit

Rishi Sunak praises Good Friday Agreement ahead of Joe Biden visit

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has described the Good Friday Agreement as an "incredible moment in our nation's history" as he prepares to commemorate its 25th anniversary with US President Joe Biden in Belfast this week.

The 1998 peace deal ended Northern Ireland's decades-long violent conflict known as the Troubles.

Mr Sunak will welcome the US president to Northern Ireland on Tuesday evening.

They will attend events in Belfast to mark 25 years since the agreement.

The prime minister said the agreement was a "powerfully rare example of people doing the previously unthinkable to create a better future" for Northern Ireland.

"It is that promise of a better future that we offered to everyone in Northern Ireland that I will be thinking of first and foremost over the coming days," he said.

"Making good" on that promise was his responsibility as prime minister, he added.

Speaking on Sunday, Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar said he plans to "intensify" engagement with Mr Sunak over the Windsor Framework and power-sharing in Northern Ireland.

"One thing I've been struck by watching all the documentaries around the history of the Good Friday Agreement was the extent to which the taoiseach and the prime minister had to be in lock-step, and now that we have the agreement on the protocol, I think it's possible to do that.

"Certainly since Brexit, and even before Brexit, that sort of level of cooperation between the two governments, the two governments working hand-in-hand, hasn't been the same.

"And that's largely because we found ourselves in very different positions."

Leo Varadkar will host a bilateral meeting with President Biden at Farmleigh on Thursday


On Wednesday Mr Sunak will address a Queen's University Belfast conference about the Good Friday Agreement and will later host a gala dinner to commemorate the anniversary.

He has also announced that the UK will host a Northern Ireland investment summit in September.

It will connect international investors with Northern Ireland businesses and showcase the "best of what Northern Ireland has to offer", said the government.


What will Biden do in Belfast?


President Biden is due to make a speech at Ulster University's newly-opened Belfast campus on Wednesday.

It is understood that he will leave Northern Ireland that afternoon to travel to the Republic of Ireland.

His visit to Northern Ireland will be shorter than many people had expected when it was first announced last month.

Speaking after a 1916 Easter Rising commemoration in Dublin on Sunday, Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald expressed disappointment that Mr Biden would not be addressing assembly members in Stormont, RTÉ reports.

"The eyes of the world are on Ireland and the north of Ireland in particular and we have a limbo situation," she said.

Ms McDonald added that the president's visit to Northern Ireland is more "low key" than in the Republic of Ireland.

The UK and Irish government have said it should not be seen as a snub.

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris said people should "make the most" of the visit and ensure it was a "positive event".

Tánaiste (Irish Deputy Prime Minister) Micheál Martin said it would be a "manifestation of [Mr Biden's] genuine commitment to the people of Northern Ireland".

"There are many countries across the EU that would love a visit from the American president," he added.

Police in Northern Ireland have said their resources will be stretched during the president's visit.

Last week it said it had "very strong intelligence" that dissident republicans were planning attacks in Londonderry to coincide with Easter and Good Friday Agreement events.

More officers are being put on frontline duty for the coming days.


Where will Biden visit in Ireland?


During his three days in the Republic of Ireland, Mr Biden will attend engagements in Dublin, County Louth, and County Mayo.

The White House has said he is expected to address the Oireachtas (Irish parliament) on Thursday.

Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar said he was delighted that President Biden would be visiting Ireland.

"When we spoke recently in the White House President Biden was clear that in celebrating the Good Friday Agreement we should be looking ahead, not backwards," he said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Buckingham Palace Says Prince Harry and Meghan Will Not Resume Official Royal Duties
UK Treasury Faces Calls to Scrap £100,000 Childcare Support Threshold
Trades Union Congress Urges Labour Government to Rewrite Migration Policy
Riot Police Deployed After Anti-Migrant Protests Turn Violent in Portsmouth
UK Considers Replacing Some Disability Cash Payments With Direct Services
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon Warns UK Chancellor Against Higher Banking Taxes
UK Announces New Sanctions Targeting Israeli Settlements in West Bank
Metropolitan Police Investigate Alleged Illegal Donations to Reform UK
UK Charges Wiltshire Man With Assisting Russian Intelligence
UK Orders Urgent Review After Air Traffic Failure Cancels More Than 2,000 Flights
Merz Rebukes AfD Expansion in Saxony-Anhalt
King Charles Confirms Prince Harry and Meghan Will Remain Private Citizens
Labour Selects Former Child Refugee for By-Election in Keir Starmer’s Former Seat
Foreign Private Equity Accelerates Takeovers of London-Listed Industrial Companies
NHS Maternity Care Faces Scrutiny Over Support for Mothers After Caesarean Births
BBC Warns Staff Strikes Are Likely Amid Job Cuts and Programme Cancellations
English Housing Affordability Improves to Best Level in More Than a Decade
UK Health Commission Proposes Framework for Wider AI Adoption Across NHS
Labour Faces Pressure for Wealth Tax Ahead of Autumn Budget
Metropolitan Police Open Criminal Investigation Into Alleged Foreign Donations to Reform UK
UK Police Deploy Riot Officers After Anti-Immigration Unrest in Portsmouth and Dover
UK Defends Sanctions on Israeli Settlements Despite Diplomatic Retaliation
UK Air Traffic Control Failure Cancels More Than 1,000 Flights and Disrupts 65,000 Passengers
Compass Urges £10 Million Wealth Tax and Public Ownership Ahead of UK Autumn Budget
UK Government’s Devolution Plans Face House of Lords Scrutiny
Maldives Seeks New Chagos Sovereignty Talks With UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham
UK Airports Face Continuing Disruption After National Air Traffic Control Failure
UK Bans Imports From Israeli Settlements and Expands Sanctions on Iran
British Chambers of Commerce Forecasts UK Growth of 1% as Investment Remains Weak
UK Suspends Local Government Reorganisation Decisions and Cancels Planned Shadow Authority Polls
UK Parliament Opens Inquiry Into Gaps in Climate Change Preparedness
Andy Burnham and Xi Jinping Hold Talks on Trade, Security and British Consular Cases
UK Joins France, Canada and Other Nations in Measures Against Israeli West Bank Settlements
UK Announces New Sanctions Targeting Iranian Nuclear and Military Networks
British Chambers of Commerce Calls for Business Rate Reform and Productivity Support
UK Farmers Warn Dry Summer Could Reduce Crop Yields and Push Up Food Prices
UK Rail Networks Hit by Widespread Delays After Major Signalling Failures
Matt Clifford Resigns as ARIA Chair After Conflict-of-Interest Scrutiny
UK and France Say Joint Border Operations Have Prevented More Than 48,000 Irregular Channel Crossings
UK Core Inflation Remains Above Expectations as Utility and Commodity Costs Stay Elevated
Jaguar Land Rover Considers Up to 4,000 UK Job Cuts Amid Automotive Industry Pressure
UK Government Pauses Local Authority Reorganisation for Legal Review
UK Public Borrowing Reaches £1.8 Billion in July, Adding Pressure Before Autumn Budget
Chancellor John Healey Puts Regional Devolution and Fiscal Discipline at Heart of UK Growth Plan
Counter-Terrorism Police Lead Salford Investigation After Two Teenagers Charged
UK Rejects Financial Reparations for Transatlantic Slavery
UK and Egypt Step Up Diplomacy Over Escalating West Bank Tensions
UK Pauses Council Reorganisation Across Four English Counties
Jaguar Land Rover Plans 4,000 Job Cuts in Major UK Restructuring
UK Unveils Planning and Regulatory Overhaul to Speed Infrastructure and Economic Growth
×