JOE BIDEN is reportedly so keen on returning to Ireland that he told Micheál Martin he wishes he never left.
During their virtual St Patrick's Day meeting on Wednesday, the President told the Taoiseach how much he missed his ancestral home.
He also said that during his state visit as vice president five years ago, he wondered to himself "why the hell did we leave in the first place."
Biden told Martin: "It was a great opportunity to show my children and my grandchildren, and my brother and sister.
"I joked at the time, after I left, I wondered why the hell we left in the first place.
"It's so beautiful, it's beautiful.
"The truth of the matter is I've a great affection for the country and a great affection for the traditions."
Their virtual meeting was the first time Martin and Biden had met, and both spoke of how keen they were to maintain the historically strong relationship between the two countries.
Biden insisted that the US will defend the Good Friday Agreement however it can, particularly in light of the recent rise in tensions between the EU and the UK over Covid-19 vaccine supplies and grace period extensions.
It's understood that the Taoiseach asked Mr Biden about the potentially sending Ireland some surplus vaccines - which they have tens of millions of - but the President insisted he wouldn't consider doing so until the summer.
During the meeting, the traditional shamrock bowl handover too place, virtually of course, and both spoke of how keen they were to meet in person, whenever that might be possible.
"We agreed to keep in close contact," Martin told the Irish Mirror. "I am only a phone call away."
"So clearly, if opportunities arise, obviously as we emerge from Covid, we could very well see that. But there was nothing hard and fast decided on that today."
