US President Joe Biden accepts invitation from the King for state visit

The King has invited US President Joe Biden for a state visit, the White House has confirmed.

In a briefing session on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Mr Biden had accepted the invitation during a recent telephone call.

The announcement comes as it has been confirmed that Mr Biden would not be attending the coronation next month, with First Lady Jill Biden representing the US instead.

And the state visit invitation comes after confirmation that the president will be visiting the island of Ireland next week starting in Belfast before travelling on to Dublin with visits to Co Louth and Co Mayo where his ancestors are from.

Ms Jean-Pierre said that Mr Biden had a telephone call of 25-30 minutes with the King.

She said: “He congratulated the King on his upcoming coronation, they have a very friendly conversation, he has a good relationship with the King.

“He talked about how he enjoyed visiting the Queen back in 2021 when he and the First Lady came to Windsor and he hoped to visit again soon.

“Actually, during the call the King offered for him to come and do a state visit which the president accepted.

“So they will see each other again very soon, they have a very good relationship, there are many things that they both care about, key shared values, key shared issues, that they want to continue to discuss like climate change.

“And that conversation will continue in the visit in the near future.”

She added: “I do not have a timeline, I can’t say when it will be but the president was appreciative of the offer by the King and looks forward to it.”

A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said they would not comment on the arrangement.

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