Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has warned there’s a chance Joe Biden’s trip to Ireland could be cancelled.
It is understood that Mr Varadkar is referring to the fact that former President Jimmy Carter is gravely ill in palliative care in his home state of Georgia.
If the former President dies, then the Irish trip must play “second fiddle” to the funeral ceremonies current President Biden will have to attend as Commander in Chief.
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And a senior Dáil source told the Irish Mirror on Tuesday the whole schedule is still “up in the air” because of the ailing health of former POTUS Carter. He said “all bets are off” and President Biden will cancel his trip if he has to attend the funeral of President Carter.
Speaking on Newstalk Breakfast on Tuesday morning, Mr Varadkar said he was looking forward to meeting President Biden.
But it is understood that there are also huge concerns in the Dáil that carefully-laid plans for the visit - President Biden is due to land in Ireland on April 11 - may have to be wiped.
The Taoiseach said: “Plans are under way, very much looking forward to greeting President Biden in Ireland and following up on discussions we had in Washington a few weeks ago.
“It’s actually not officially confirmed yet and the programme isn’t finalised. We’re working together to finalise.”
Newstalk presenter Shane Coleman then probed further, asking: “He is coming though, isn’t he?”
And Mr Varadkar replied: “He is, but I do hasten to add, it’s not actually confirmed, so there’s an outside chance that it won’t go ahead, but we’re working on the basis that it will go ahead and all the plans are being put in place.
“Now, he’s going to Northern Ireland first before he comes South, so there’s three governments involved and a lot of logistics to be worked out, but it’s coming together.”
Another senior Dáil source clarified the situation regarding President Carter’s health that the Taoiseach was hinting at.
She said: “Well, if Jimmy Carter dies, all bets are off, the trip is off. We know we play second fiddle when it comes to that, even though they haven’t told us.”
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