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To mark the occasion of St Patrick's Day, Taoiseach Enda Kenny travelled to the White House for a meeting with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office. During the meeting,  President Obama announced his intention to visit Ireland in May:

I wanted to say today that I intend to come to Ireland in May, and I'm expecting to go not only to all the famous sites but also to Moneygall, where my great-great-great-great-great grandfather hails from. Joe Biden is envious because he wants to go first.

President Obama also spoke of the "bond" between Ireland and America, saying it was one he hoped to "reaffirm"...

We have had an excellent conversation about how Ireland is going to be bouncing back from the severe economic challenges it has experienced in the last several years. The Taoiseach shared with me his plans and his efforts to make sure that people are put back to work in Ireland, that the financial system is stabilised and he exudes great confidence. I'm sure that we will be co-operating very closely with him.

The Taoiseach stressed that Ireland is "open for business"...

My message to the American people is that the new Government, which I lead, which has the strongest mandate in the history of the State, will continue to build on the very strong traditional linksthat we’ve had with the United States -- in business and in politics and in culture and the arts, and so on....Ireland will continue to be a very strong and loyal friend of the United States, and we will work with the authorities and the political process to the benefit of both countries.

The Taoiseach also welcomed the President's decision to visit Ireland:

 I’m absolutely thrilled, I have to say, that President Obama has confirmed that he is to come to Ireland.  He follows a long line of Presidents of the United States who visited Ireland.  And I can assure you, Mr. President, that this visit will be rapturously received by the people of Ireland.

You can view the full video from

below: