US president plans return visit to Ireland if re-elected

US president Barack Obama plans to visit Ireland again if he is re-elected in November, he told Taoiseach Enda Kenny at the White House today.

At the traditional St Patrick’s festival reception in Washington, Mr Obama gave assurances he would be returning to Ireland following his successful visit to his ancestral home in Moneygall last year if he is returned to power.

Mr Obama said it was his "great pleasure" to welcome Mr Kenny whom he said had "done extraordinary work during a very difficult time."

"I want to thank the Taoiseach, his lovely wife, and all of the people of Ireland for the extraordinary hospitality they showed Michelle and I when we had the chance to travel there recently. It was a magical day. It was too short, so I provided assurances that we will be returning."

"We have had a terrific discussion about a wide range of issues. Obviously for both our countries, one of the biggest priorities is getting the economy moving in the right direction and putting our people back to work," he said.

Mr Kenny said a return visit by the US president was a possibility and that the president was welcome at any time.

However, referring to the upcoming US elections in November, Mr Kenny quipped the president had "a small matter to deal with first".

He said his reception in the US confirmed his belief that "the reputation of our country has been restored internationally, and that the unique relationship that we've always had with the United States for so many reasons is exceptionally strong."

The two leaders discussed Ireland's economic problems and the wider European debt crisis as well as the continuing violence in Syria at their meeting today.

The Taoiseach presented Mr Obama with a bowl of shamrock.

The meeting was part of Mr Kenny's five-day US tour which coincides with St Patrick's Day festivities. Mr Obama and Mr Kenny, along with vice president Joe Biden, will attend a St Patrick’s Day lunch in Congress later.

The president and first lady will also host a reception for Mr Kenny at the White House.

Mr Kenny yesterday rang the bell to open the New York Stock Exchange. “As of now, Dow Jones is up 28 points,” he announced, provoking hearty laughter among several hundred business leaders at lunch in a Washington hotel.

Ambassador Michael Collins introduced Mr Kenny as “a man with a very big mandate and a very big mission and a very big message" to deliver.

“My message is the same everywhere,” Mr Kenny replied. “Invest in Ireland’s recovery.”

In the afternoon, Mr Kenny spoke to an energy sector and utilities seminar hosted by Enterprise Ireland to introduce 10 Irish businesses working in renewable energy to US utilities companies. He also addressed a joint meeting of Science Foundation Ireland and the Wild Geese Network of Irish Scientists.

The Dublin and Washington-based groups announced a new partnership. Officials from the enterprise body and the science foundation said Mr Kenny’s presence raised their groups’ profiles and gave them greater credibility with US interlocutors. “You rarely get a Government as open as this one,” Mr Kenny told the business leaders.

He and his Ministers would be happy to meet with any investors who come to Dublin, he added.

Ireland’s openness to international business would pull the country out of the debt crisis, he insisted.

“We’re seeing businesses bet on Ireland every day,” the Taoiseach said. He mentioned a long list of US companies who’ve invested in Ireland in the past year, including PayPal, Pepsi, Abbott, Dell, Eli Lily, Mastercard and Twitter.

When he took office, trust in Europe was at a nadir, Mr Kenny said. A year later, talk is no longer of defaults or the end of the euro zone, but of a growth and jobs agenda. He did not mention the referendum on the fiscal compact.

Mr Kenny said Ireland’s “unique” relationship with 40 million Irish-Americans and 70 million in the Irish diaspora worldwide “is more than a strategic asset; it’s part of who we are. Our task is to ensure this global family stays linked”.