Origins
Traditionally U.S. leaders were reluctant to get involved in the Troubles in Northern Ireland taking the view that it was primarily an internal matter for their close ally, the United Kingdom. However when Bill Clinton became U.S. President that changed. When Clinton was on the campaign trail as the Democratic candidate for President in 1992, he suggested both orally and in a letter to Congressman Bruce Morrison that he would favour the appointment of a Special Envoy for Northern Ireland. Clinton was not alone in supporting a more active U.S. involvement in Northern Ireland. On 23 February 1993, shortly after Clinton assumed office as President, U.S. Congressman, Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy together with 16 co-sponsors sponsored a Congressional Resolution calling for the appointment of a Special Envoy. The Resolution called that it be:
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that the President should appoint a special envoy who will be personally and actively involved in bringing about a solution to the present conflict in Northern Ireland, including encouraging and facilitating negotiations among all parties to the conflict who agree to end the use of violence.
However, the proposed Resolution initially came to nothing. Nevertheless, Clinton discussed the prospect of appointing a Special Envoy with the Irish premier, Albert Reynolds when the two leaders first met on St. Patrick's Day in 1993. However Clinton deferred any appointment. When the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) declared a ceasefire in 1994, Sinn Féin party leader, Gerry Adams urged Washington to play a "nudging role" as it did in South Africa and the Middle East. Congressman Bruce Morrison was considered a potential candidate.
Read more about this topic: United States Special Envoy For Northern Ireland
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