Irish premier Micheal Martin has arrived at the West Wing of the White House for a bilateral meeting with US President Donald Trump.
Mr Trump greeted Mr Martin outside and the pair shook hands, ahead of their sit-down engagement in the Oval Office which is likely to focus on Ireland’s trading relationship with the US.
The Taoiseach has said he intends to highlight a “two-way street” of investment between the nations in a bid to address concerns the president may voice around a US-Ireland trade imbalance.
The meeting comes amid heightened concern that Mr Trump’s protectionist approach to tariffs and tax could pose a significant risk to an Irish economy that is in large part sustained by long-standing investment by US multinationals.
Mr Trump will later be presented with a bowl of shamrock as the centrepiece of the Irish Government’s major overseas diplomatic push in the run-up to St Patrick’s Day on March 17.
Earlier, Mr Martin hailed the president’s focus and “progress” on brokering peace since he returned to the Oval Office.
Micheal Martin joined a breakfast meeting earlier on Wednesday hosted by US Vice-President JD Vance at his official residence in Washington DC (Niall Carson/PA)
He made the remarks while attending a breakfast meeting at the US vice-president’s official residence as part of a day of engagements in Washington DC.
Mr Martin and his wife Mary were greeted by Vice-President JD Vance and his wife Usha at the US Naval Observatory.
Mr Vance hailed the US relationship with Ireland as “one of the great alliances” between nations.
“One of the things we try to do with this breakfast is just remind people of the important bonds of friendship between the United States and Ireland,” he said.
The Taoiseach praised efforts by the new US administration to place a focus on peace, referring to the conflict in the Middle East and war in Ukraine.
Mr Martin said peace on the island of Ireland is “a signature achievement” of US foreign policy, and that Ireland is ready to “play our part” in ending other conflicts.
“Nowhere is the strength of the US-Irish relationship more in evidence than in our own peace process,” Mr Martin said.
“Forty-four years ago, president Reagan called for a just and peaceful solution to the conflict that has for so long devastated lives on our island.
“Politicians from both sides of the aisle rose to the occasion, and the lasting peace we enjoy today on our island is a signature achievement of US foreign policy.
“This story of peace is one that we both wrote together. We know that building peace is a difficult and painstaking task, and we are ready to play our part in supporting work to end conflict and to secure peace in Ukraine or in the Middle East or wherever.
“We welcome very much the unrelenting focus and effort that President Trump and his administration has brought to this task from his very first days in office, and we welcome the progress that is clearly being made.”
Mr Martin also invited Mr Vance and his wife to Ireland – having previously undertaken a road trip around Ireland in 2023 – and extended a particular invite to Mr Martin’s native Co Cork.
“We would be honoured and delighted to welcome you both back to our shores before too long,” Mr Martin said.
“Now, the vice-president did say the road trip could be somewhat difficult next time around, given the number of vehicles that might have to be attached.”
JD Vance revealed he was wearing Shamrock socks (Niall Carson/PA)
Referring to his visit to Ireland, Mr Vance praised its “incredible” communities, “beautiful” landscapes and “interesting technological growth”.
He said: “One of the more robust areas for us to work on with our Irish friends in the years to come is going to be technology and particularly artificial intelligence, as we really take the next stage in an important level of technological progress.”
Sporting a pair of shamrock socks which he showed to the room, Mr Vance added: “The president is a very big fan of conservative dress, and so if he notices these socks, you have to defend this as an important part of cementing the Irish-American relationship.”
Mr Martin thanked Mr Vance for his “warm welcome and hospitality” and joked he would need to “adjust very rapidly” his dress sense after seeing Mr Vance’s socks.
He continued: “The United States has been a steadfast friend of Ireland for centuries. Indeed, the United States was the first country to recognise our long-sought independence,” Mr Martin said.
“Together, we have built deep and enduring political, cultural and economic bonds, greatly enriching our two nations in the process.”
US health secretary Robert F Kennedy and Ireland’s ambassador to the US Geraldine Byrne Nason were among attendees at the US Naval Observatory breakfast meeting.