President Joe Biden appeared to disrespect British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak upon his early Wednesday morning arrival in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Biden moved Sunak to the side so he could salute Lord-Lieutenant David McCorkell, King Charles III’s personal representative for County Antrim, according to the Daily Mail of the United Kingdom.
Moment UK PM Rishi Sunak greets Joe Biden in Belfast
The US president is beginning a four-day trip to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Irelandhttps://t.co/uzN5dYvmyt pic.twitter.com/0p0f6wk8JL
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) April 11, 2023
In response to a video of the incident, one Twitter user said, “It’s not exactly a push but he quite disrespectfully kind of places Sunak to one side like he’s not that bothered about him. Biden is not a nice man. He thinks this shows his ‘Oirish’ credentials to be giving short shrift to the UK PM.”
Biden frequently boasts of his Irish ancestry. He intended to spend two and a half days in the Republic of Ireland after spending a half-day in Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. Euronews reported that the president will visit the Irish seaside community of Carlingford to trace his family’s origins.
Regarding the incident on the airfield, a second Twitter user speculated that Biden may have moved Sunak to the side because he did not know or recognize the prime minister and mistook McCorkell for Charles.
Moment UK PM Rishi Sunak greets Joe Biden in Belfast
The US president is beginning a four-day trip to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Irelandhttps://t.co/uzN5dYvmyt pic.twitter.com/0p0f6wk8JL
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) April 11, 2023
Paul Clark, a news anchor for UTV in Northern Ireland, argued that Biden handled the situation appropriately.
“It’s called international protocol!!!! On arrival, a visiting Head of State is welcomed by – in this case – the Lord Lieutenant for County Antrim… representing the King!” Clark tweeted.
Biden later shared a cup of tea with Sunak in a Belfast hotel before delivering a speech at Ulster University in Belfast.
Biden began his visit to Belfast by meeting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The two leaders had tea at Biden’s hotel before the president headed to Ulster University to deliver remarks. https://t.co/A4A5um1v2P pic.twitter.com/3vJ8c6JZac
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) April 12, 2023
The president is in Ireland to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, which ended decades of violent conflict between Catholics and Protestants on the Emerald Isle, according to the Washington Post.
Former Massachusetts representative Joseph Kennedy III, whom Vice President Joe Biden appointed special envoy to Northern Ireland in December, accompanied the president to Belfast on Wednesday.
Joseph Kennedy III, President Biden’s Special Envoy for Northern Ireland, “We believe in Northern Ireland, we believe in peace” pic.twitter.com/JzF95gjgIm
— David Charter (@DavidCharter) April 12, 2023
Kennedy is the grandson of the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the late President John F. Kennedy’s great-nephew.
59 years ago today, President John F. Kennedy visited County Cork and remarked on Ireland’s long history of emigration:
“Most countries send out oil, iron, steel or gold, some others crops, but Ireland has only one export and that is it’s people.” pic.twitter.com/vBYuryjOMn
— U.S. Embassy Dublin (@USEmbassyDublin) June 28, 2022
In June 1963, during the final year of his presidency, JFK, who, like Biden, was an Irish Catholic, visited his ancestral home.