GERMAN CHANCELLOR Angela Merkel will address the National Forum on Europe this afternoon at Dublin Castle on issues relating to the Lisbon Treaty for EU Reform.
She will also attend a meeting of the European People's Party with Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny, the president of the European Parliament, Hans Gert Pöttering, and new Belgian prime minister Yves Leterme.
Mr Kenny will host the meeting of the EPP, the largest group in the European Parliament. He will report on Fine Gael's campaign for ratification of the Lisbon Treaty as well as having bilateral talks with Dr Merkel.
Earlier in the day, President Mary McAleese will receive Dr Merkel at Áras an Uachtaráin.
This evening, the President hosts a State dinner for President Toomas Hendrik Ilves of Estonia.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern will meet Dr Merkel to discuss the treaty, world trade issues and climate change and will also meet President Ilves.
Anti-Lisbon Treaty campaigner and chairman of the Libertas think-tank Declan Ganley has accused the Yes side of conducting "a rather spectacular 180-degree turn" on the issue of foreign interference in the Irish referendum.
He said Dr Merkel's visit and a further forum address on Thursday by European Commission President José Manuel Barroso were "clearly intended to boost support for the Lisbon Treaty" and would be conducted in the "most message-controlled manner possible".
He said the "gushing" welcome afforded to the two visitors would be in stark contrast to the stern warnings from the Yes campaign last December that foreign special interests would try to interfere in the Irish referendum process.
"We are seeing on a weekly basis a parade of European leaders being flown in for photo-ops, issuing carefully worded statements approved by the Yes campaign which are shamelessly designed to scare the Irish people into supporting this treaty," Mr Ganley said.
Meanwhile, the Irish Farmers Association has appealed to Dr Merkel to use her influence to prevent the EU agreeing a deal at the World Trade Organisation which would harm European agriculture.
A letter from IFA president Pádraig Walshe said no agreement in the world trade talks would be better than a bad agreement which could cost EU agriculture €20 billion and mean total loss of €40 billion in EU economic activity.
"It is our belief," Mr Walshe said, "that the present state of the European Union's position in the WTO negotiations in Geneva is the greatest threat to European farming, the food industry and employment in rural regions in our generation."