US President Joe Biden has said that he is looking forward to meeting the Taoiseach and having a “celebration” for the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.
Mr Varadkar told the President in the Oval House that large crowds will turn out when he visits Ireland next month.
In a short media briefing before the pair’s meeting, Mr Varadkar and Mr Biden praised the other country’s response to the war in Ukraine.
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Mr Biden described the Taoiseach as a “great friend to the United States”.
“For us, the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement is something […] I'm looking forward to meeting you and having a celebration together.”
The Taoiseach said that he was looking forward to President Biden visiting Ireland next month and that Irish people would throng the streets when he was in the country.
“[I’m] really looking forward to your visit,” he said.
“I promise you that we're going to roll out the red carpet and it's going to be a visit like no other. “Everyone's excited about it already. We're going to have great crowds who would love to see you.”
Mr Biden told the Taoiseach that he was delighted to have the Taoiseach in Washington for St Patrick’s Day, noting that he knew the importance of the day.
He continued: “It is a big day in my grandparent’s household, my household, a big day here and I know a bigger day at home.
“There is a phrase about, ‘think where man's glory most begins and ends, and say my glory was I had such friends.’
“You’ve been such a great friend and a great friend to the United States.
“Ireland and the United States share friendships and long, long traditions”.
“I know a lot of this you do know, coming here for as long as you have, that the Americans look forward to St Patrick’s Day.”
Mr Biden and Mr Varadkar both praised each other’s reactions to the war in Ukraine.
The US President said: “I want to thank you for standing together on Ukraine. It means a great deal, speaking out against Russia's brutal aggression.”
Mr Varadkar said: “I really profoundly want to thank you and America for your leadership in relation to Ukraine.
“I never thought we'd see a war like this happen in Europe in my lifetime. America is at its best when it stands with European partners to defend freedom and democracy.
“Thank you for that and I know you'll stay the course with us and we'll stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
Mr Biden said that he is “very strongly supportive” of the Windsor Framework, as the Taoiseach thanked him for sticking with Ireland through Brexit.
Speaking after the meeting, the Taoiseach said that he had a “very good” and “warm” meeting with President Biden.
“He gave us a lot of time. [He is] extremely well informed about Ireland and Irish affairs.
“Had a chance to talk about the situation in Ukraine and had a chance to talk about Northern Ireland.
“The President s very keen to see the institutions up and running again in Northern Ireland and I hope you see the Windsor framework coming in fully to operation and talking about economic cooperation as well. Agreed to cooperate closely on cybersecurity which is important for both of us as countries
“[We] spoke about a potential visit, he certainly hopes and expects to come to Ireland hopefully in the future and we very much hope he visits.”
The Taoiseach said that he did not give any more details about the visit to Ireland during the meeting.
When asked if he believed a visit to Ireland from President Biden could be a catalyst to get Stormont up and running, Mr Varadkar said it was a “sperate issue” but said that Mr Biden wants to see the Good Friday Agreement operating as it should.
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