Biden promises investments of one million dollars if self-government is restored to Ulster

Joint Home Rule in Northern Ireland is one of the pillars of the 1998 Good Friday Peace Agreement and its re-establishment is a priority, not only for London, but also for Washington, a major proponent and guardian of the pact. And, therefore, the President of the United States, Joe Bidenhe complained about the check book and conditioned the arrival of billions of investments from his country until the end of the current political blockadewhich has already been going on for more than a year.

“The simple truth is that peace and economic opportunity go hand in hand (…) There are dozens of large American corporations that want to come here, that want to invest,” Biden said during a speech he gave this Wednesday at the University of Belfast on the occasion of the 25 anniversary of the signing of the agreement which ended sectarian violence between unionist Protestants and republican Catholics.

After reminding that peace cannot be taken for granted and that it is not “inevitable”, the president assured that the Good Friday Agreement is what led American companies to invest 2000 million dollars (1800 million euros) in the last decade. I predict that if things continue to move in the right direction, [la inversión] will more than triple (…) if there is an effective decentralized government, even greater opportunities will be created»published.

The words of the occupant of the White House seemed to be addressed to the protesters of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP, acronym in English), who refused to allow the reactivation of the autonomous institutions, in protest against the conditions Brexit imposed on the British province. However, Biden avoided mentioning them or any group in particular, in an attempt not to further sour relations between the Northern Irish parties. “I hope that the Assembly and the Executive will be restored soon (…) but that depends on you, not on me, but I hope that it will happen,” he concluded.

Harsh criticism of the president

Despite the caution he tried to maintain, the unionist sectors questioned Biden sharply. “He hates the UK, I don’t think there’s any doubt about that”said the former head of the Northern Ireland government, Arlene Foster, in an interview with GB News (British Fox).

For his part, Deputy Sammy Wilson not only described the US president as “anti-British” but also held him responsible for the current paralysis the region is experiencing due to his support for the protocol Brexit.

The party’s leader, Jeffrey Donaldson, for his part, avoided addressing the allegations and simply limited himself to saying that Biden’s words would have little effect on the re-establishment of a joint autonomous government. Reason? They remain unhappy with the changes made by the United Kingdom and the European Union to the rules that will govern their divorce in Northern Ireland.

But Biden has not only been criticized for his stance on the Northern Ireland peace deal, but also for the fact that he spent barely 17 hours in the region and only participated in a public event.

And some right-wing media believe that the American president ignored his host, the prime minister Rishi Sunakbecause he barely kept a A 30-minute meeting with him. The meeting discussed the war in Ukraine, Brexit and Northern Ireland, but not on the long-awaited free trade agreement, over coffee.

Sunak denied that there were any problems in “special relations” and reminded that he was with Biden in the USA last month and that he will see him again at the G7 and then in June in Washington.