US president Joe Biden has joked that he is the only Irish man Pope Francis has met “who’s never had a drink” as the two men met in the Vatican on Friday.
Pope Francis replied by referencing that whiskey comes from Ireland, in a jovial exchange between the leaders as they exchanged gifts.
The Democrat presented the pope with a commemorative coin and said: “You are the most significant warrior for peace that I’ve ever met.”
The coin included a reference to Mr Biden’s home political turf of Delaware and the military unit in which his late son Beau served before his death from a brain tumour in 2015.
“The tradition is – and I’m only kidding about this – next time I see you if you don’t have it, you have to buy the drinks,” Mr Biden said as he presented the coin.
“I’m the only Irish man you’ve ever met who’s never had a drink,” he quipped, speaking to the pontiff through a translator as the two leaders clasped hands.
“Because the Irish brought whiskey,” Pope Francis replied in Italian, as aides laughed at the exchange.
Mr Biden by his own account has never drunk alcohol, explaining while on the campaign trail in 2008: “There are enough alcoholics in my family.”
