There are no confirmed plans for a state visit to Ireland by US President Barack Obama, the Department of Foreign Affairs and US embassy have said.
They were responding to a newspaper report which claimed Mr Obama had signalled his intention to make a three-day visit to Ireland this summer.
A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman said Taoiseach Brian Cowen had extended an open invitation to Mr Obama at last year’s White House St Patrick’s Day party.
But no official plans for a visit by the US leader had been confirmed with the state departments here to date, he said.
A US embassy spokesman also denied the report, saying while US ambassador Dan Rooney had been campaigning for Mr Obama to visit Ireland there were no official plans in place as yet.
US deputy national security adviser, Denis McDonough, said recently Mr Obama was eager to visit Ireland, and “keeps saying that he would very much like to.”
