US President Joe Biden is set to visit Ireland next month to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. This visit will include stops in both Ireland and Northern Ireland, making it
a serious security operation for officials on both sides of the border. Defence and security analyst Declan Power stated that planning for President Biden's visit had been going on for months, with reconnaissance trips already completed. While a visit to Ireland is somewhat low-risk compared to President Biden's recent trip to Ukraine, this visit will still have stops in Ireland and Northern Ireland against the backdrop of the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, which adds extra pressure.
The Secret Service will be present during the visit, with personnel wearing trench coats and earpieces. They may also be talking into their coat sleeves, but Mr Power stated that there is a lot more to the Secret Service than meets the eye. There are many people at work within the US Secret Service, and a lot of men and women of different races and sizes who often blend in with the crowd when the US president is on a walkabout.
Director of the CIA during the Obama administration, John Brennan, is a first-generation Irish American. He stated that given the United States' support for the Ukrainian military effort to withstand the Russian invasion, there would be increased efforts to ensure that any presidential travel overseas has sufficient support and security practices in place. Mr Brennan added that the visit occurring at the same time as the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement would require extensive interaction with Irish and Northern Irish officials to ensure all contingencies are addressed.
It was St Patrick's Day 12 years ago when former US President Barack Obama announced he would visit his cousin Henry Healy in Moneygall. Prior to the visit, locals noticed some preparation beginning. Security officials hid a lot of information from the local community, and they were unaware of many details even days before the visit. The village of Moneygall was adapted for optimum security, including lifting and welding manholes, putting caps on flagpoles, and having sniffer dogs inspect houses. On the morning of Mr Obama’s visit, houses were vacated, and locals had to pass through airport-style security to queue on the street to be in with a chance of meeting him.
Henry Healy also revealed that behind the scenes, there was more going on during Mr Obama's visit than people knew. The nuclear football traveled with the US President, and in Ollie Hayes' residence behind his bar was the whole communications network in his kitchen, ready in case there was an international incident. He added that it was an unbelievable machine to see it in operation.
Overall, President Biden's upcoming visit to Ireland is expected to be a serious security operation, with officials on both sides of the border preparing for one of the most powerful politicians in the world to visit in a couple of weeks' time. Photo by SteuveFE, Wikimedia commons.