The President of Ireland Catherine Connolly has travelled to Scotland where she will today begin a four-day official visit.
It will be her first official visit to Scotland and the first time an Irish President has visited the country in ten years.
Her diplomatic mission comes just days after she met with US President Donald Trump at her official residence, the Áras an Uachtaráin, in Dublin, and told him to him that “normalisation of war and genocide can never be accepted”.
In Cardiff on Monday, the First Minister John Swinney met with Welsh First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth, Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill and Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald to sign a joint Memorandum of Understanding on the need for constitutional change.
Ms Connolly, who was elected Irish President last November, is a former independent TD for Galway West, is being accompanied on the trip by her husband Brian McEnery.
The official visit will commence with a meeting this morning with the First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney, and the Minister for Europe, External Relations and Energy, Stephen Gethins, at Bute House in Edinburgh.
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President Connolly previously met with the First Minister in November last year, when he was the first overseas head of government received by the President at Áras an Uachtaráin following her inauguration as the tenth President of Ireland. At that meeting, the First Minister invited President Connolly to visit Scotland.
In a statement ahead of the Official Visit, President Connolly said: “I am very pleased to have the opportunity of making an Official Visit to Scotland and building on my engagement with the First Minister in the opening weeks of my Presidency.
"Ireland and Scotland are bound by strong ties of friendship, culture and language, with people moving between our countries for centuries.
"I am very much looking forward to meeting with those involved in many of the projects bringing our people together over the coming days, as well as meeting with members of the Irish community in Scotland.”
Speaking ahead of the meeting at Bute House, the First Minister said: “I am honoured to welcome President Catherine Connolly to Scotland – I wish her a happy stay as she begins a programme of engagements across the country.
“Scotland and Ireland have deep and enduring connections that I am determined to build on and strengthen. These links enrich our societies and create opportunities for people in both countries.
“It was a privilege to be the first head of government to meet the new President last year. During that meeting, I set out my aim to strengthen cooperation in areas that matter to both our nations.
“This week’s visit by the President makes it clear this is a shared ambition and demonstrates the closeness between our two nations. I look forward to discussing future opportunities that will be underpinned by our renewed bilateral framework and our shared commitment to peace, equality and international solidarity.”
Later this morning, the President will visit the National Library of Scotland where she will meet with the team working on the ‘Across these Islands: Shared histories, Shared futures’ project funded under the UK–Ireland Shared Island Cultural Co-operation Programme and view artefacts from the permanent collection in the Library.
This afternoon, President Connolly will visit the Royal Society of Edinburgh where she will receive an Honorary Fellowship.
She will then receive an overview of the ‘Silent Harm’ project, funded under a Royal Irish Academy/Royal Society of Edinburgh programme, on supporting deaf victims of gender-based violence in rural areas as well as meet with some of those involved in the establishment of NAOISE (the Network of Academics for Irish and Scottish Engagement).
While at the RSE, the President will also meet with the Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, Kenneth Gibson MSP.
The Official Visit will continue over the rest of the week with engagements in Glasgow, Coatbridge, and the Isle of Skye where she will visit Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, Scotland’s National Centre for Gaelic Language and Culture.
The Irish Government has stressed that the visit is to strengthen cultural ties between Ireland and Scotland - and is not a political visit.
But it comes as Scotland’s First Minister set his sights on a second Scottish independence referendum during the current Holyrood term.
Mr Swinney claimed Andy Burnham would be the “last Prime Minister” of the UK, following the “historic” meeting of nationalist leaders in the Welsh capital,
The Cardiff agreement backed by the leaders’ states: "For the first time ever, there are first ministers in Scotland, Wales and the North of Ireland who are all committed to independence from the United Kingdom.
"For people watching across these islands, and for people watching around the world, there could be no clearer sign that Westminster's time is coming to an end."
The memorandum then commits the three governments to "working together as equals, sharing ideas and expertise, and building relationships based on mutual respect and common interests".
"Momentum is behind our movements," it adds. "We believe that constitutional change is coming."
The Irish President’s official visit to Scotland builds on her official visit to London and Leeds in May, when she met with King Charles at Buckingham Palace, and her two official visits to Northern Ireland in February and August, during each of which she met with the First Minister and Deputy First Minister.
In June, President Connolly also received the First Minister of Wales, Rhun ap Iorwerth, on a courtesy call at Áras an Uachtaráin.
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